Hello everyone,

Five years ago, my younger sister, Kate, was diagnosed with Leukemia. At that time, doctors only gave her a 19% chance of living. She was admitted to John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD. It's known for having one of the top biomedical research facilities in the world. Kate went on to have months and months of chemotherapy and high-dose radiation treatments. My mother gave up her job to go out and live with her to help her through it. It was a very difficult time for our family. My sister has always been strong-willed and a determined person, and she perserveered and is doing amazingly well today. Since her treatments, she has gone on to get a graduate degree, work for the Red Cross, and get married. She was told that she would not be able to have children as the treatments were extremely hard on her body. She even beat those odds, and she and her husband Bill have a wonderful 8-month old daughter, Sidney.

September 19, 2008 marks the 5th anniversary of her first clean bone marrow test. This is an important milestone as five years without any problems makes you "officially cured"!

We are all very fortunate that Kate made it through. Many do not. Leukemia is a very tough disease to treat. Being cured is just as much luck as it is science. Every year that Kate has been out of treatment, she has taken part in "Light The Night". It is a fund-raising walk for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. With this year being the 5th year and Kate's official "survivor" status, our entire family is going out to Washington, D.C. and taking part in this walk with her and her friends and other family members. I am writing this to everyone to ask for any donations you might wish to contribute to the cause. "Team Kate" is looking to raise $5000 this year to help find a cure for Leukemia and other blood cancers. You can visit the Team Kate page to see some photos of her, my mom, and her husband Bill and their daughter, Sidney and read her story here:

http://teams.lightthenight.org/teamkate_freedomplaza

From there, you can click on my name (Paul Hansen) in the participants list, or click on the link below:

http://www.active.com/donate/ltnAlexan/2291_fivestring

This is the donations page where you can help support me, my sister, and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

The Light the Night Walk we are participating in is on Saturday, October 18th in Washington D.C.

There is no need to reply to this email, nor need to tell me if or how much you donated. If you do - know that me, my sister, all of our family, and those battling cancer really appreciate it.

Thanks.
Paul H.