In Search of 500 and Other Important Numbers

SEVEN years ago John and Brenda Warner lost their daughter Shelly when she passed away due to severe preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome ONE week after she gave birth.

Shelly was just TWENTY-FIVE years old.

That year, Shelly became one of the SEVENTY-SIX THOUSAND mothers who die of preeclampsia annually worldwide.

Her daughter, Hailey, is now SEVEN.

The Warners are putting on their EIGHTH Promise Walk for Preeclampsia in Davenport, IA this coming May.  They have big hopes and dreams for this year’s walk.

Like years past, the community will come together and honor those victims of the disease as well as support survivors.  They’ll have kids’ activities, speakers and a silent auction.  But this year, this is the year they hope to have FIVE HUNDRED walkers attend.

Your ONE registration could make that happen.

Register now and be  ONE more person that makes a difference for women in Davenport and worldwide.  Go to www.promisewalk.org/davenport and register now.  Adults are just $20 and children are $10.

Come be ONE of FIVE HUNDRED who walk with the Warners, their granddaughter and other family members on May 12^th at Modern Woodmen Ballpark.

Perhaps ONE day, these FIVE HUNDRED will have brought the deaths from preeclampsia down to ZERO.

Veteran Walk Gets It… in Ink!

Survivors at the 2011 Lehigh Valley Promise Walk

The Lehigh Valley Promise Walk for Preeclampsia is one of our veteran walks having been around since 2005.   Over the years, they’ve grown from a smaller “friends and family” walk into the full-fledged public Promise Walk they are today.

Coordinator Dawn Detweiler has much to be excited about for this 2012 Promise Walk, including two walkers who plan to permanently tattoo the Promise Walk awareness ribbon on their bodies!  The tattoo artist is the husband of one of the participants, and will be offering the ribbon tattoo to the public with proceeds going to the Preeclampsia Foundation.  What a lasting way to show your dedication to eradicating preeclampsia—inking it!

If you’d like to make a less permanent, yet just as meaningful display of support, perhaps joining the Lehigh Valley Promise Walk is just the key.  You’ll be able to enjoy a playground party complete with clown and animal balloons, a raffle, silent auction and goody bags.  Goody bags are limited so be sure to register early!

This year’s walk will be held at Forks Township Community Center on Saturday, May 5^th.  In addition to the fun activities, those present will hear expert and survivor speeches, receive valuable information and gain support from the community of preeclampsia survivors gathered that day.

Go now to www.promisewalk.org/lehighvalley to register.  Registration is $20 for adults and $10 for children.  Walk-up registration on the day of the event is $25.  For more information, contact dawn.detweiler@preeclampsia.org.

Remember – May 5^th.  Make sure you get it on your calendar… in ink!

Late Night Musings Lead to Inaugural Philly Promise Walk

Late one night while feeding her infant daughter, Sarah Hughes decided something big.  In the fuzziness of it being way too late, she decided to do something about preeclampsia.  When she got up the next morning, she didn’t forget that decision or chalk it up to the hour of the day, instead she became the Philadelphia Promise Walk for Preeclampsia coordinator.

In their first year, this walk can already be considered a huge success and they are still two months out from walk day.  They are more than half way to their goal of $10,000, have had the state of New Jersey declare May Preeclampsia Awareness Month and are well on their way to meet their attendance goals.

All this began after Sarah delivered her second child.  Her pregnancy was healthy, she delivered a healthy baby at full term, spent her time in the hospital and went home.  It was at home that things seemed “not right”…she felt as if she couldn’t catch her breath, she had a headache and her vision seemed off.  When she called her doctor, she was told to go to the hospital immediately.

After three harrowing days, Sarah was on her way to recovery even though she spent weeks more dealing with and monitoring high blood pressure.

Sarah hopes that the Philadelphia Promise Walk becomes “an amazing annual family event,” and we couldn’t agree more.  If you’d like to register or donate and join Sarah and her fabulous volunteer team at the Saturday, May 12^th Promise Walk, you can go to www.promisewalk.org/philadelphia.  This year’s walk is held at Challenge Grove Park in Cherry Hill.  For more information, contact philadelphia@preeclampsia.org.

Inspired to Strength in Boston

Photo of the Field of Cradles/"I Gave You Words" display at the first annual Boston Promise Walk for Preeclampsia in July 2011.

Strength.

Courage.

Self empowerment.

This is the message that first time coordinator Stacy Vallely hopes participants will come away with from the second annual Boston Promise Walk for Preeclampsia.

Stacy was a participant in last year’s Promise Walk for Preeclampsia after her son spent 86 days in the NICU when Stacy developed preeclampsia at 28 weeks.  He was just 2 lbs and 2 oz at birth.  Stacy was moved by the other survivors she heard from that day, the knowledge she gained from an expert at the event and touched by the beauty of the butterfly release.

This year, as coordinator, she hopes the activities and tone of the day are uplifting and inspire others to take on the fight against preeclampsia.  Events at the May 6th Boston Promise Walk include speakers, a moment to remember those lost and survivors, children’s games led by the Life is Good Playmakers, a raffle, face painting and more!

To register for the walk, which is at Castle Island Park, go to www.promisewalk.org/boston.  Registration is $20 for adults and $10 for children.  Registration the day of the walk increases to $25 for adults.  For more information, contact Stacy Vallely at stacy.vallely@gmail.com.

Searching for Support and Finding a Promise

Participants at the First Annual San Jose Promise Walk in May 2011.

This time last year San Jose resident Jennifer Smith was pregnant and about to learn that her pregnancy was not to be one of those simple and healthy ones.  At 28 weeks, Jennifer was diagnosed with preeclampsia and eventually hospitalized.  Jennifer delivered at 33 weeks, 6 days when her body could no longer hold off the disease.

During the time that Jennifer was hospitalized she was looking for support from those who had been there and found the Preeclampsia Foundation.  She also found Tiffany Trevers who was last year’s San Jose Promise Walk lead coordinator.  Tiffany was in the midst of putting on the inaugural San Jose Promise Walk.

Jennifer’s experience last year with the Promise Walk was so positive that she took the big leap to Coordinator for 2012.  Together with Tiffany, they look to match last year’s amazing attendance and fundraising totals and reach even more local Bay Area folks who may have been touched by preeclampsia.

This year’s walk will once again feature a dove release to honor victims of preeclampsia and already has the support of several local businesses and ventures such as Blood Centers of the Pacific, Developmental Pathways for Kids and Sports Basement to name a few.

You can register to be a part of this day now!  The walk will be held on May 6th at Vasona Lake County Park.  Registration is $20 for adults and $10 for children.  Got to http://www.promisewalk.org/sanjose to register or make a donation.

Come and join Jennifer and Tiffany as they renew their promise to help find a cure, bring awareness and support others who have experienced the pain of preeclampsia.

$400,000 and a Few Miles To Go…

Planning for the 2012 Promise Walks for Preeclampsia around the country officially started a few months ago. While walk coordinators work out their budgets, solicit sponsors and get the word out for registrations and donations, the Preeclampsia Foundation is working behind the scenes on how funds raised during 2012 can best be spent.

Last year was a record year for the Promise Walks raising over $300,000. With more than 30 walk locations lined up for this year, 2012 looks to be even stronger and even more work can be done toward the mission of education, research and support.

This year, $400,000 could:

• Support and sustain the start of a patient registry and bio-bank for storing DNA samples, making it a viable tool for researchers studying the hypertensive disorders of pregnancy

• Provide additional Continuing Education classes for health care providers across the country

• Help us develop our Heart Health campaign alongside partners such as the American Heart Association and WomenHeart, helping to educate women of the critical association between preeclampsia and heart disease later in life

 

Plus…our walks, headed entirely by volunteers, are funded 100% by donations and registrations.

Given all that we can do together this year, make sure you are a part of this. Register for a walk near you, encourage friends and family to both walk with you and donate, or help your local walk coordinator with preparations. Not a walk near you? Contact the Foundation to see what walk coordinator you might be able to help remotely, or register for a walk as a virtual walker and solicit donations to support your choice of walk locations.

With your support, we’ll reach that $400,000 and get closer to a world where preeclampsia is a footnote in pregnancy books, something not only curable, but preventable.

Registration is open…what are you waiting for???

www.promisewalk.org

 

 

And We’re Off…

The 2012 Walk Season has officially begun for those of us who work on planning the walks.  Our first conference call was last week and this returning coordinator is so excited!

We have so many new walks planned all over the country, so many wonderful new and motivated coordinators and great returning veteran coordinators.  It’s going to be a great year.  For me, I find myself in a familiar spot…once again looking for the perfect location for my walk.  Everything starts from there and I’m confident it will work out.

All wrapped in the kick-off to planning is the hope and optimism of what the walk can be…how many people will attend this year?  How much money will we raise?  Who will I meet that will touch my heart with their story?  How many times over the course of the next months will I cry both tears of sadness and anguish as well as tears of pride for what we do?

We all have such personal reasons for organizing a walk.  We’ve been touched by preeclampsia with the loss of loved ones, loss of babies, loss of an innocent pregnancy and unwanted stays in the NICU.  We’ve had more than swollen ankles and little bit of heartburn.  We have husbands and family members that once sat over us in hospital ICU rooms.  Those same husbands and family now track down sponsors, count out t-shirts and get up with us before the crack of dawn to make our walk days perfect.

I know come the end of May, I’ll be ready for a break for a bit but right now I’m rejuvenated, motivated and determined to have my best walk ever.  It’s my promise for 2012.

*********

There is still time to start organizing a walk in your area…contact National Walk Director, Becky Sloan for more information.  Becky, a volunteer and coordinator for the San Diego walk as well, can be reached at becky.sloan@preeclampsia.org.

Top 3 Reasons NOT to Host A Promise Walk

How many times have you told yourself: “I just don’t have the time/energy/insert-the-blank to volunteer for the Preeclampsia Foundation… even though I’d probably really enjoy the feeling of helping women just like me.”

Well today, we present the top 3 reasons NOT to host a Promise Walk for Preeclampsia, so you can start having these really great excuses, rather than all that nonsense about how many hours there are in a single day.

1. You do not own a computer or a telephone. Staying in touch is a necessary part of being a coordinator, so if you’ve taken a vow of silence, or chosen a non-technology way of life, this volunteer path may not be for you.
2. You live in an industrial zone without a single decent place to walk. If your town has a carbon footprint the size of a T-Rex, the smog and acid rain might be a bit of a turn off to participants. Instead of hosting a Promise Walk, we’d recommend you work on a family relocation plan.
3. You have no interest in funding life-saving research. After all, 92% of the money raised by the Promise Walk goes straight back into education and research that will help future generations. Science isn’t for everybody, right?

Wait a second… do none of these describe you? Then you have what it takes! Read “Becoming A Promise Walk Volunteer” by Autumn Spear for more information on how to get involved, and join us for a free teleconference call on September 13 to find out what it takes to have a successful Promise Walk for Preeclampsia to your hometown, and help us “Make Strides and Deliver Hope!”

The After Glow

The last walker has crossed the finish line, the banners have all been taken down, the brochures packed up and most of us coordinators have packed up our supplies until next year.  Me?  I still have a few boxes in my living room that need to be sorted before the 2011 Promise Walk  is completely in my rear view mirror.

Did you walk, volunteer or coordinate a walk this year?  Do you realize what an amazing impact you have made?  There were men and women, mommies and daddies that came to our walks that had recently lost a baby.  You made them feel they weren’t alone and gave them hope.  Families came that lost a daughter, sister or mother to this disease.  You honored their memory.  Countless women came to the walks that had their lives altered by preeclampsia; you educated them on their now higher risk for heart disease.  You made such a difference.

Did you start a team or recruit family and friends to support you?  Those people now know more about preeclampsia, its symptoms, its effect on our lives.  They may have never heard of it before, but now it’s more than “on their radar”, they’ve become our supporters.

The donations you received, the registration fees you paid all go to the more than $271,000 we raised nationally…a new record for our Promise Walks!  The Foundation can now reach out to more women with educational materials, support more families touched by preeclampsia and fund more research initiatives.   It may have been just one morning this past April, May or June, but that one morning walking has a ripple effect and it
will just grow bigger next year.

So…pat yourself on the back, give yourself a round of applause!  We couldn’t do it without you!  For me, being a walk coordinator is one of the most rewarding things I’ve done in my life and with each new success each year, I look to raise the bar higher for the following year.  I can’t wait to start watching my little fuchsia feet starting climbing to my goal for 2012.  For now, I’ll give myself at least another week to just bask in the post walk after glow.

A Brief Life, Yet Cooper Leaves Legacy

A Special Guest Post from San Jose Promise Walk Participant Elizabeth Barnett.

I remember how excited we were when we first found out I was pregnant.  It was November 8, 2010.  I had taken a pregnancy test by myself because I wanted to surprise my husband with the news.  After taking the test I was ecstatic and went to the store where I found a bib that said “Daddy’s hugs are the best.”  My husband gives the best hugs so I thought this was perfect.  I wrapped the bib and went home.  My husband was already home and I could hardly contain myself so I immediately said I had a surprise for him.  He unwrapped the gift and looked at the bib with a bit of a confused look.  It took a little time to register.  I shouted out that I was pregnant!  He was going to be a dad.  Tears of joy just started flowing and we immediately thanked God for the blessing.  In that beautiful moment we had no idea what lay ahead of us. 

At 20 weeks we were told there was a mass on the placenta and our baby hadn’t grown since our 17 week appointment.  We were extremely worried and for the next week I had numerous doctor’s appointments and tests done to try to figure out why our baby wasn’t growing.  Around 22 weeks my feet and legs began swelling.  I assumed this was a normal symptom of pregnancy.  The swelling got worse at 23 weeks with my hands and face swelling overnight.  I was unrecognizable.  I had read a little about preeclampsia but didn’t realize how serious it was.  I had had a busy week and thought I was just on my feet too much and needed to rest.  I drank lots of water and rested all day.  Later that night we took my blood pressure on a home machine.  My blood pressure was really high which was not normal for me.  I was concerned and feeling like something was wrong but knew I had a doctor’s appointment the next day.

At my doctor’s appointment I mentioned I had been experiencing some swelling, my blood pressure was high and I wasn’t feeling well.  The doctor immediately became concerned and had the nurses take my blood pressure.  It was up to 159/111 and there were proteins in my urine.  The doctor sat my husband and I down and that is when everything became a blur.  It all happened so fast.  I was diagnosed with severe preeclampsia and had to get to the hospital immediately.  I would be on bed rest in the hospital until I delivered my baby.  Naively, I was calculating in my head that I would spend 17 weeks in the hospital, not realizing how grave my situation was and how dangerously close to death I had come.

My husband and I went straight to the hospital and called our family on the way.   At the hospital I was immediately hooked up to an IV of magnesium to lower my blood pressure.  My blood pressure was 170/110 when I got there.  They also told us we were having a boy.  Our family arrived at the hospital not long after us so we could explain what was going on and we needed their support.  We were so upset and couldn’t believe how quickly things had taken a downward turn.  The doctor explained all of our options and none of them were good. Our son, Cooper had an 11% chance of surviving and if he did survive, he had a very high chance of having a myriad of problems.

On the morning of March 15, 2011, we chose to induce labor, knowing Cooper most likely would not survive the delivery.  It was the hardest decision we have ever had to make.  As I gave birth to my Cooper, all I could think about was the painful silence: my baby did not cry out to me.  This is not how it’s supposed to be.

Cooper Landon was born at midnight on March 16, 2011 and he didn’t survive.  The nurse immediately handed Cooper to me to hold.  Cooper was a beautiful baby boy.  He was so precious and little, 11 oz. and 11 inches long.  We held Cooper close for a long time and told him we loved him.

After coming home from the hospital, I knew immediately I wanted to do something to make a difference so other families would not have to go through what my family did. Upon hearing of our loss, we had many friends who wanted to make charitable contributions in memory of Cooper.  I began to research online and that is when I discovered the Preeclampsia Foundation.  I also learned there was going to be the first Promise Walk in San Jose on the same date and in the same park my baby shower was going to be.  I couldn’t think of a better way to spend that day.  My family started a team and spread the word.  In a matter of six weeks we had raised $8,000 and about 30 of our family and friends showed up to walk with us.  We were so touched and overwhelmed by all the love and support we felt.  It still brings tears to my eyes.  I know we have already made a difference. 

Today, we are still grieving the loss of Cooper.  Cooper has changed our lives forever and he will never be forgotten.  He will always be our first-born and live in our hearts.  My passion now is to continue to raise awareness about preeclampsia and funds for research.  I supply doctor’s offices with brochures on preeclampsia and share my story whenever possible.  Those are just a couple of ways I help the Preeclampsia Foundation move their mission forward in memory of our son, Cooper Landon.