Five years ago my mom was diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma, a pesky little tumor that really messes up balance and tries to eat its way into your brain.
diagram courtesy of the Mafield Clinic
We called the tumor Wally. He was removed, and all was mostly right in my mom’s world again. She lost the hearing in her right ear, and had to deal with a little facial paralysis for awhile, but now if you looked at her you would never know she had surgery. A couple of years ago (I think) a new tumor started to grow. This one, Wally Jr. is smaller and lot more slow growing, so for the meantime, he is going to get to keep his room in my mom’s auditory canal.
Last year my mom started participating in the National Brain Tumor Society’s annual 5K walk at Angle’s Stadium to raise money for brain tumor research.
The Parental Units at the 2012 Brain Tumor Walk
Last year she found out about the walk a mere 3 weeks before it took place. Her team consisted of just her and my dad. They raised $350. This year she has more notice. She already has a team of 4, and hopes to raise at least $1,000. This is where my lovely readers come in. As a loyal team member, I am committed to helping her raise the money. My goal is to raise at least $100 for her. I am hoping that some of my loyal readers (although most of them are family and will have heard about this already) will help by making a small donation to the team. For anyone who is in the Orange County area and like to walk through the baseball stadium, you can even be part of her team! She is having shirts made, and there is a Hooters near the stadium that serves fantastic wings (or so I’ve been told). It promises to be a fun day for a good cause.
To donate to her team all you need to do is:
log onto:
www.braintumor.org
click on “events” on the top bar
scroll down to Orange County
click on “donate to a participant”
Type in “Michelle Davis” or team “Michelle’s Angels
I thank you for any help you may be able to give her, even if it is just spreading the word to your friends and family to see if they could help. I wouldn’t wish a brain tumor on anyone (okay, there is someone, but that’s besides the point), and any help that can be done to fund research in the field could go a long ways in making life easier for those dealing with these pesky little buggers. I’d like my mom to be able to keep her brain for a little while longer.
The Scamp Abroad 
Thank you. As your brother says after every MRI, “Good to know you HAVE a brain.”