In the last three months of her life, my mom proved she is one of the bravest people I know with the way that she battled cancer. My mom always displayed her courageousness but it’s in the fundraising category that I first noticed it. It all started when I was five…
In the late seventies, my mom co-chaired the Santa Claus house at Perimeter Mall in Atlanta which benefited the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. It was somewhat ironic that a Jewish woman born in a displaced persons’ camp from two Holocaust survivors was running an event with both a Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus but my mom never worried how she was perceived. She just wanted to help those with cystic fibrosis. Her job was to drive around Atlanta and ask anyone and everyone whether they would be willing to donate toys, crafts and clothing. She claimed that all the driving actually helped her get to know her new hometown. Mom was told by a friend that recording artist Isaac Hayes ran down West Paces Ferry quite often so Mom got to work. Two weeks before the event she drove down West Paces Ferry looking for Mr. Isaac Hayes and found a gentleman in a red shirt, red short and a red bandana running near Pace Academy, a famous private school in Atlanta, escorted by two big men she presumed to be his bodyguards.
My mom pulled the car over beside the men and shouted “Mr. Hayes!” He came over to the car window and she told him about me and the cause and asked if he could donate something. My mom remembered it this way. “He was so nice and took down the information about the event, date and set up time and wrote down my name. He never really said whether he would help but I thanked him and told him how much that would mean to me and to everyone involved. I was nervous when I drove off but so proud that I made the decision to stop and at least try.”
While she came away with nothing, she obviously made an impression on Mr. Hayes. Friday morning before the event two big men in trench coats entered and asked for my mom. She walked over and one of them said “Mrs. Lipman, Mr. Hayes would like you to have these items for your Santa Claus House and hopes you raise lots of money for cystic fibrosis.” They gave her a few signed record albums of his and a framed photograph of The Cape of Good Hope in Africa which was signed by him (shown above), as well. Mr. Hayes’ hobby was photography, and the picture was one he took. Mom kept it and it still is framed in her house.
Mom said she learned a lot from her encounter with Mr. Hayes. “It goes to show that taking a chance can bring unexpected rewards and you never know how kind human beings can be. Had I decided not to stop and take the chance, I would have never gotten to meet the great man himself and would never have known if I could succeed or fail. My only thought at the time was to test myself and see if I could accomplish this and the worst that could happen is just getting a ‘No.’” Mom summed it up this way. “Never give up on yourself because you will be amazed at what you can achieve if you put your mind to it.”
The Santa Claus House raised a lot of money that year and my mom through her example taught me to never be afraid to ask when it came to a good cause. I credit her teachings with giving me the confidence to run Wish for Wendy for so many years and help us to raise $4.5 million in our twenty years of existence.
Mom never gave up on curing cystic fibrosis and neither will I. That is why I am asking you to support The Wish for Wendy Foundation (you can donate at www.cfwarriorproject.org) which benefits those with cystic fibrosis.
Our goal of $100,000 is in sight.
We hope you can help us out in memory of the courageous woman who would literally do anything to rid the world of cystic fibrosis.
Thank you to those who have already donated and thank you in advance to those of you who are considering making a donation.
And thank you to my mom for continuing to inspire me and everyone else in the quest to cure cystic fibrosis. Your courageousness never went unnoticed. Your legacy lives on through your family. We love you.
Thank you for never fearing the word “No.”
Live your dreams and love your life.
Andy