October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

As October is coming to a close I just wanted to take this time to Honor those that have been affected by Breast Cancer. As Millions may now that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I wanted to Honor those that I know personally that have been affected with this Condition, Weather you are a Mother, Daughter, Friend, Family Member, Sister, Aunt, Cousin these facts from the American Cancer Society is GREAT NEWS to hear. In 2013, an estimated 232,340 new cases of invasive breast cancer were expected to be diagnosed among US women, as well as an estimated 64,640 additional cases of in situ breast cancer. That year, approximately 39,620 US women were expected to die from breast cancer. Only lung cancer accounts for more cancer deaths in women. Breast cancer incidence rates are highest in non-Hispanic white women, followed by African American women and are lowest among Asian/Pacific Islander women. In contrast, breast cancer death rates are highest for African American women, followed by white women. Breast cancer death rates are lowest for Asian/Pacific Islander women. Breast cancer incidence and death rates also vary by state. Cancer statistics such as these are presented in this updated edition of the American Cancer Society’s Breast Cancer Facts and Figures. This publication provides updated cancer research facts about breast cancer, including incidence, mortality, and survival trends for breast cancer, as well as information on early detection, treatment, and factors that influence risk and survival. www.cancer.org

Cuba le debe una fiesta a Celia Cruz/Google Doodle Goes Live Globally Honoring Celia Cruz’s 88th Birthday

Justo cuando terminan las festividades por el Día de la Cultura Cubana, una de las grandes de esta Isla estaría cumpliendo sus 88 años de vida. Hoy recibe uno de los homenajes más extendidos en lo que en materia de tecnología actual se permite: un doodle del rey universal de los buscadores en Internet, Google. En Cuba su nombre es historia, cultura silenciada en muchos diccionarios. Úrsula Hilaria Celia de la Caridad Cruz Alfonso de la Santísima Trinidad vio la luz un día como hoy en 1925. Un nombre imposible de pronunciar, pero que la cultura acuñó con un simple Celia Cruz. Sencillamente Celia para tres generaciones de cultores de la música cubana. Una cantante tan grande como su éxito, tan fresca como su música y tan tropical como su Isla. Un año después del triunfo de la revolución cubana y durante una gira de la orquesta Sonora Matancera, Celia “se quedó” en los Estados Unidos para convertirse en la voz del exilio cubano. Pero la Cruz fue más que eso. Dedicó toda su carrera a transformar la salsa junto a Tito Puente y las Fania All Star haciendo que su música viajara todo el mundo hasta convertirse en la Reina de la Salsa. Con su voz acampanada cultivó a todos los de por acá y por allá. La negra tuvo su tumbao a ritmo de guaracha y son montuno. Reconoció que esta vida es un carnaval y la vivió plenamente, siempre con la esperanza de volver, como ella misma dijera: “a su Cuba libre”. A pesar de los imposibles, la sonrisa nunca se borró de su rostro. Con su voz inconfundible, extrovertida, carismática y extravagante en el escenario, Celia fue mezcla de sonidos afrocubanos y jazz. Fue para el mundo la cara de una isla donde su música estaba prohibida, pero que se escuchaba con el volumen no muy alto en más de una casa. Su muy rítmico ¡Azúcar! acompañó a la Cruz como “grito de guerra” durante toda su carrera, en la que acumuló un total de cinco Grammys, dejó como huella una estrella en el paseo de la fama, recibió en tres universidades el premio Honoris Causa y el habitante de la Casa Blanca en 1994, Bill Clinton, le entregó el Premio Nacional de las Artes. En 2003 el cáncer terminó la carrera de la artista, pero no se detuvieron los premios póstumos y eventos en recuerdo de la que fue la cubana más querida y estimada por los “exiliados políticos”. A Celia la enterraron hace diez años con un puñado de tierra de su país que recogió por debajo de una cerca desde la Base naval en Guantánamo. Logró en vida casi todo lo que se propuso; sólo una cosa le faltó hacer: a Cuba nunca pudo volver desde su salida en 1960. Hoy Celia Cruz cumpliría años en esta tierra, pero la vida quiso que se fuera antes. Google hace homenaje póstumo a la diva en su 88 aniversario. Hoy es día de fiesta porque ella así lo hubiese querido. Día de salsa y de ¡azúcar! Día de unir sueños y olvidar rencores. Hoy es el día de Celia Cruz. Cuba le debe la fiesta. MIAMI (October 21, 2013) — Eventus, the leading multi-cultural experiential, sports and entertainment marketing company in the United States, and the Celia Cruz Estate, proudly honor the Queen of Salsa’s birthday today with a custom-designed Google Doodle celebrating her life and legacy. Google, Inc., the multinational corporation specializing in Internet-related services and products, chose the music icon, who died in 2003, to grace their search engine’s home page today, on what would have been her 88th birthday. “Ten years after her passing, it is incredible how ‘alive’ she still is. Her voice and image are present everywhere and her impact on culture worldwide is immeasurable”, said Nelson Albareda, CEO of Eventus. “Celia continues to bring joy and enrich the lives of so many globally. We are grateful to Google for our collaboration in assuring that her legacy continues to reach new fans around the world.” Cuban-born Celia Cruz was internationally recognized as the “Queen of Salsa” and during her lifetime received countless awards and honors including three GRAMMY® Awards, four Latin GRAMMY®s, the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Smithsonian Institution, among other accolades. In 1994, US President Bill Clinton awarded her the highest honor the country bestows upon an artist: the National Endowment for the Arts. Celia recorded over 78 albums, many of which obtained platinum status and have been distributed worldwide. The Smithsonian Museum hosted an exhibit called Azúcar: The Life and Music of Celia Cruz, and in 2011, the United States Postal Service honored her invaluable contributions to the entertainment industry and international impact by placing her image on a US postage stamp as part of the Latin Music Legends Series. “There have been many posthumous tributes to Celia in these last ten years, but this one by Google is certainly one of the most important and far-reaching. The creation of her very own Google Doodle, an honor bestowed on a select few who have made special contributions to mankind, is a testament of her significance, not just musically, but culturally,” said Omer Pardillo-Cid, sole executor of the Celia Cruz Estate. “She would have loved it!” The Celia Cruz Estate and Eventus, the sole representative of the Celia Cruz Estate, continue to jointly develop a comprehensive global strategy to keep her legacy alive and to reach new generations with her timeless music.

My Story: An Honored Hero Takes Steps

Here is a Story about a little 4year old boy by the Name of Hayden. Hayden was your typical healthy, active 4 year-old-boy - he loved sports, playing with friends, and riding his scooter. In the summer of 2008, Hayden started having frequent bowel movements and loose stool. After a few weeks and multiple negative parasite tests, he could not make it more than 20 minutes without having to use the bathroom. We tried to go to the beach one Saturday afternoon and could not make it out of the neighborhood. That afternoon Hayden was admitted to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). A few days later, after many IVs, endoscopies and colonoscopies, Hayden was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. Our world was changed forever. We started with typical treatments but unlike a sinus infection and other illnesses we had encountered, nothing seemed to work. The despair as a parent of a sick child and not being able to cure it is indescribable. You feel your sole purpose in life is to protect your child, yet you are not able to. We finally hit rock bottom over the holiday season of 2011 when his diagnosis was changed to Crohn’s disease. Hayden was having a flare up and nothing was working. He was admitted to the hospital again over the holiday break. There is nothing more depressing than being hospitalized for Christmas. The emotional toll of watching your son wither away in front of you, fearing it was the last time you would hug him was almost too much. However Hayden is strong, possibly stronger than both of us. He continued to fight and he never lost his will. He pulled through and has been responding better to the recent combination of medicines. Still weighing in the 20th percentile and measuring in the 15th percentile in his age group, this hero continues to play lacrosse and basketball, in between trying daring skateboard maneuvers. He wakes up every day with a smile, eager to see what life brings. (As told by his mother Heather) Last year, Heather and her family's Take Steps team, dubbed team Haydee Hoo, placed second, raising more than $10,000 in just their first of participation. This is the family’s second year participating in the Mercer County Take Steps Walk for Philadelphia/Delaware Valley Chapter. You can help children like Hayden overcome IBD when you join us at one of our many Take Steps Walks this season.