I was on the road yesterday, spending some time with a good friend of mine, and after many hours in the car our conversation turned to Molly. We were talking about how Molly’s battle with cancer, and her subsequent death, has impacted a community. There is no doubt that Molly’s battle, and our journey through her entire ordeal, has not only brought our little seacoast community closer together but we have bonded with folks from all over the world that have fought similar battles. Some folks have a child that won their fight with cancer. Other families, like ours, were not so lucky. Meighan and I appreciate the good words, the beautiful thoughts, but do not think for a second that it was ever my intention to inspire a community. I can’t take credit for that…
It has been months since I’ve had the courage to read my previous updates on Molly’s Care Page. I am feeling strong these days, brave, so I took the time to read the updates that I posted last year when Molly was first admitted to CHB. Yes, It is obvious that I wear my heart on my sleeve, that’s for sure, and it’s apparent that I write what I feel in my heart but I have to confess that it was never my intention to attempt to inspire a community to rally together through my writing. I cannot take credit for that, I’m afraid. The updates were therapy for me. I could have either expressed my feelings through words or wrapped my hands around a bottle of vodka and disappeared. I could have either worn my heart on my sleeve and shared my grief with the world, or stuck the barrel of a gun in my mouth and pulled the trigger. I chose to write….
If there is one thing that you need to know about Meighan and I, it’s that were your average folks. We are your neighbors. We see ya’ll in church and I throw you a “shaka.” I see you in the water and I throw you a “shaka.” Meg and I are not anything more than a couple of normal people that had to face a nightmare. I absolutely love every single one of you for your wonderful compliments and the strength that you have given us, but the simple truth is that we’re not the heroes. You are the heroes.
Why? You folks are the ones that have rallied behind our family when you could have easily decided to ignore the reality of “life.” Meg and I will be the first people to admit that we used to think that cancer only attacked children and families that we did not know. Our life was perfect – we were untouchable. My eyes have been opened and I now look around and realize that there are millions of families in the world that are dealing with horrific drama in their lives. True, losing a child is a @#$% nightmare and I would never want any parent on this planet to have to endure that hell. But I am here to tell you that if you’re ever faced with what Meg and I have had to deal with then I am here to confess that you will find the strength to survive. Why? Friends. Pals. You are all our heroes. We chose you over the vodka and the bullet because we hoped and prayed that you would pull us through. And you did….
You were there to share our tears. You provided hugs, love, and monetary contributions in a time when it would have been too easy to find an excuse to not to share our pain. You chose to grieve with Meighan and I as we battled to overcome the loss of losing our little girl. I ain’t a hero. You folks are the heroes. I am just a survivor, and I’m able to wake up and face another day because of you – our friends.
We have a few Molly Fund events happening in March and we have some information to share. We have submitted the paperwork in order to turn the Molly Rowlee Fund into a LLC. That is the first step in obtaining a Tax ID number and that will enable us to deposit all of the “Molly Fund” checks that we have been holding onto for the past several months. As soon as we have the Tax ID number, which will be in a few weeks, we can apply for non-profit status. We have 1 year to get approved and receive our 501-C3 status. Our non-profit status will be retro-active, back to our LLC filing, so major contributors to the Rail Jam and Hockey Game will be able to receive a receipt with our non-profit ID number for their taxes. If you want to contribute and donate to the Molly Rowlee Foundation, please understand that we should have the Tax ID number to you very soon.
With that said, the Molly Rail Jam is coming up soon, March 6th, and the event is going to be HUGE! I can’t divulge too much information, but I will mention that the US Open will be the following week so you can expect to see a lot of celebrity snowboard pros at the Molly event. Huge! People are rallying for this event, it’s beautiful to see, and it’s even more wonderful knowing that so many people are committed to making the Molly Rail Jam a success. These folks could easily ignore the “reality” of life and spend their day doing something else other than supporting another non-profit organization. Thank you for your support, thank you for the love, and thank you all for being heroes.
Shaka!
Buck
