Lexington musicians are coming together to raise money for Sarah Lister. This explains more:
From Sarah's CrowdRise Page, Written by her sister, Kerstin Rao:
Life changes in an instant. Truly, this could happen to any of us. A normal day of working and caring for your kids can, with one phone call, turn into the new reality that you are a cancer patient.
But first, let us take a step back and tell you about our beloved Sarah Warner Lister. You know that friend in your life who always makes you laugh, no matter your troubles? We know the feeling, because that’s our Sarah. For the past 10 years, she has been the Executive Director of Lexington’s Ronald McDonald House, providing comfort and hope to thousands of families from around the world while their children are hospitalized. Her beautiful smile and always-positive personality bring great comfort to those families. Now she is in the hospital at UK Markey Cancer Center and needs our help.
January 5th was a normal day for this happy, active family, but it was about to become the day that changed their lives. That night after dinner, Sarah got a call from her doctor with the results of some recent blood work. She was hoping for good news and less medicine for the Lupus she was diagnosed with last June; instead, her doctor told her that she has Acute Myeloid Leukemia. He said she would need to go into the hospital the very next day for a month of aggressive chemotherapy. And, by the way, because of the germs little ones are exposed to every day, her sons would not be able to visit for the entire month. Thomas is 8 and Charlie is 3 – not seeing them for a month was unimaginable for Sarah.
For most of us, this would be a challenge that would take the wind out of our sails, but not Sarah. She and her husband, Charles, put on a brave face and a smile and put the boys to bed. Sarah quickly pulled together all of the information that Charles would need to take over her role. They sat down and calmly went through passwords, teacher’s names, location of life insurance policies and their will, and the needs of Sarah’s mom, who lives with them and recently had knee replacements. Sarah checked into the hospital the next morning to begin the fight of her life.
The doctors, staff and patients at the Markey Cancer Center were amazed by this beautiful, smiling woman who always has a kind word and concern for others. As she settled into this new reality, Sarah’s family and friends were trying to decide how they could help. Team Sarah was born on that day – a far-reaching group of family, friends, colleagues, friends of friends, donors, board members, past clients, teachers and medical staff… even people who have never met Sarah and who are touched by her incredible force. We invite you to join Team Sarah!
AML will require a lengthy treatment and recovery process and maybe even a bone marrow transplant. Finances will be unsure and bills will be tremendous and could top $100,000 after insurance.
Sarah: "Is there any way to illustrate how awkward it is to have been a fundraising professional for charities my entire career, and now I am the one in need? 'Irony can be so ironic...' - Bugs Bunny."
Please join us at this fundraiser to benefit Sarah and her family. Thank you