Monday, May 19, 2008

WOW !

Charlie, Britton, Angel and Rob want to thank you all for helping us have such a wonderful race. How cool was it to see all of you out there in your Charlie T-Shirts, all 333 of you. We know there were those of you who were unable to make it and we missed you but know that your heart was with us. When we arrived Saturday morning what an unbelievable sight it was to see you all there smiling and happy. Many of you with kids that at the early hour must have been no small task getting them prepped for the event and many of you had traveled great distances to come and play with us. Thanks to all of you. I have no doubt that Charlie loved it as well. I only have one regret from the race and that is that Angel and I didn’t get the chance to meet and thank all of you. Some of you who we only know from the blog did come and find us and introduce yourselves and for that we are extremely grateful. I hope that all of you had the chance to at least see Charlie and experience the profound effect he can have on a person. We wish that we could of spent more time with all of you and we could get to know you better. You are all such great people.

As far as the actual race is concerned I’m not gonna lie, Charlie and I cheated. I mean we cheated bad. Per the previous post where Meghan said that we did a quarter lap but that was probably a bit too generous. Admittedly Charlie wasn’t there to race, he was there to see you all. So after several short cuts we were the first stroller to cross the finish but surprisingly enough quite a few runners were already there, most notably a couple of speedsters from UVSU who had a cool little gift for char. Thanks guys. It was neat to see the rest of you come across the line, granted some were a bit quicker and less lathered up than others but it looked like everyone was happy. All this fun and for such a great cause, the BIAU, who in putting on this event provided not only an avenue to raise a few bucks to help out those w/ broken noodles but more helpful for us was it gave us a way to see you all and burn a calorie or two. And trust me, some of us could stand a few more 5k’s in our future, like maybe everyday in our future. Take no offense as I am in need most of all considering I tip the scales at approx. the same weight as an outdoor defecatory platform made of bricks. That being said I hope that this won’t be a one-time deal. We are already planning on next year and would love to see you all there again.

I want to say thanks to a couple of new friends we made at the race. The first was a little boy named Hunter, who while having issues and challenges of his own he and his super kind parents came out in their Charlie’ shirts to support my Super Cooper. Thanks for your support guys, it was great to meet your little man and I continue to covet his totally sweet camo-chair. Next is Jimmy, what a blessing you have been to Charlie and our family. Many of you probably don’t know Jimmy and before the race Saturday either did we. Jimmy was a stranger who like many of you kind of stumbled upon Charlie’s story and I guess like most of us, was affected on some level by him and his travails. Unbeknownst to Angel or I, Jimmy had been working w/ my sibs and made up a bunch of the maroon and silver “taking Charlie steps” wristbands as a way to help raise money to help us pay for the 39 syringes and other more trivial costs, like Dave Duzy’s salary for the last 3 months. Not only did Jimmy go through the struggle of dealing w/ my fam but he paid for the wristbands out of his own pocket and got his place of employment to match the donations given for the wristbands. All he asked for in return was if he could have his picture taken w/ Char. True generosity. Thank you to Nikki and your Piper friends. Thank you Lambert for your camera and your time. Thank you Celeste and Scott for the shirts and tolerating my sisters. Thank you to my family for being civilized and tactful whilst conducting your preparations. Thank you Chris and Chad for providing sustenance. Thank you all for your selfless generosity, from the Woolstenhulme’s to Bubba Jed, you are all in our prayers and we thank you for keeping Charlie in yours. Thanks to Charlie for being so strong and brave and helping us all see what is truly important in life and bringing us together. Most importantly thanks to the Almighty for continuing to send good and kind people here to earth who care about things other than themselves and restoring one man’s faith in humanity. So thank you to all you good and kind people out there, thanks for everything.

24 comments:

The Woolstenhulme Family said...

The race was AMAZING. We had a blast there. It was great to see Charlie as well as the amazing support team he has. We are looking forward to it again next year because I too need to walk more than 1 5k in a lifetime. Thanks again.
The Woolstenhulme's

Anonymous said...

It was so good to see you again, Angel and family! I told you I'd mail the book, but then realized I don't have your new address, and neither does Jennifer at the office. Could you e-mail it to me at karamenning@yahoo.com?

Kara M

The Crazy Wolf Pack said...

No need to thank us it was least we could go for such an amazing little boy and his wonderful family. I too need to do a few more 5k's and I am already excited to participate next year. Thank you for letting us in you life.

Kristin said...

So glad it was such a great turnout... wish we could have been there and LOVE the pics (saw some on Ginny's blog).

The Baum's said...

That was the coolest thing I've ever done! I'll remember it always and can't wait for it next year, it's a new tradition! I'm sooooo glad Charlie was there - what a freaking cutie!

Roxey said...

Very well put, Rob. I love you guys so much, and am so grateful YOU are in the lives of me and my family.

Unknown said...

We can't wait to see pictures!! We really wanted to race, but Mom (me) wasn't sure I could successfully tow 4 littles 5K with Dad at work. Maybe next year??

Steph Miles and family

Marilee said...

Rob, thanks for the update. I was actually there but I ran sooo fast that I missed all the hoopla. So, really, I was there and gone before anyone knew and I didn't even get a shirt or credit for winning the race. (cough, hack etc)
Waiting for the pictorial report so I'll know what I missed.
It does sound absoulutely amazing!! Congrats to all who worked so hard. My family rocks!!!

Anonymous said...

I was one of the walkers who participated on Saturday. I did not feel like I could talk with you without crying. It was amazing to stand off in the crowd and watch you and your family. You were surrounded by so much love! Charlie just emulates love, strength and compassion. You and your family continue to inspire me to try to do more and to be active in helping others. I looked at all of he people that have been influenced by Charlie and I know that you all continue to push forward without hesitation. Your family has a lot of devotion and I am so glad that I can catch a glimpse of Heaven when I see pictures of Charlie, Britt, Angel and Rob! You are heroes to many of us. I would love to purchase a Charlie wristband. Is that possible? I have donated on the website, but I do know how expensive day to day supplies and meds are. I am a cancer survivor and I still require a lot of meds and treartments to stay that way. Let us know if we can purchase a wristband. I know several people who would love to have one to remind us to continually take Charlie steps!

Anonymous said...

We should all be thanking you for sharing Charlie with us. I still check the blog a couple of times a day! Love and prayers to all of you!

whit said...

A couple of things:
-Who wrote this, trying to pass themselves off for Rob?
-I want to buy wristbands, how? And, do they come in child sizes?
-Thanks for being reluctant heros. The 5K was amazing, this little tot has some major celebrity. Thanks for sharing him with all of us.

Marianne said...

Hello! My husband Paul and I were so excited to run for and meet you and Charlie (even though we did add a few minutes in our race time!) We were touched to meet you and your sweet family. Best of luck! (I'm the one from the UVSC track team)

Meghan said...

whit - my thoughts exactly. i had to re-read a bit to be sure it was a robbie post... i love when he is humbled as it rarely ever happens. and i do not cry at rob's posts generally, but this one got me. people are amazing.

we do have the reminderbands from jimmy - they won't be for "sale" but for "donation" to those who'd like one. we will have info on that in the next day or two. and yes they do come in child sizes.

Juiceweasel said...

It was great to see all of you, we rarely see each other anymore. I'm sure that Marge and Marion were smiling on us and wishing they could be there to cheer us all on (and maybe offer us a Coke at the finish line). Thanks for co-ordinating everything. It was great to be part of such a worthy cause. Please let us know about any future events/fundraisers. We will keep checking the blog so please keep up the fabulous posts, although I rarely get through them without crying, and laughing of course. Robert, you are hilarious.
Love,
Aimee and Fred

Nikki said...

I picked up a couple of shirts and a pair of Binoculars left behind on Saturday. Please let me know if they belong to you or know who they might belong to.
Thanks!
Nikki

WX Ences said...

Angel -
Thanks for the comment on our blog! I'm glad we were able to help, if even in such a small way. I can't find adequate words to express my sympathy for what your family has been through, but my awe for the strength and courage you have shown continues to grow. It has been nice to have such a reminder to be grateful for the health of my own four little beauties and to take each day, and the trials that come with it, one step at a time!

Clay and I are eagerly looking forward to the opportunity to come out next year and participate in the race and we would love to help in any other way we can.

Best wishes and lots of love,
Audri & Family

Kristin said...

Okay, so I admit I didn't read all the comments, but I'm pretty sure your "thanks" reach just about everyone. Point? You don't need to give thank you cards to everyone who has ever done anything to assist you. You have provided so much by sharing your lives (private as they once were and maybe soon will be again) with all of us. I'd say that and your thanks on the posts are thanks enough! Just my opinion though. :)

We love you and understand that writing a cagillion thank you's will only eat up more of your highly valuable time.

Anonymous said...

I was one (of probably many) who wishes I was there to feel the spirit, joy, energy and determination of your little Man Charlie. Sounds like it was a wonderful event. Hope to see more of them for him and to attend in the future. Continued prayers for progress.
Cheering you on from Spanish Fork!

Anonymous said...

Meg.... I will take a few of those wristbands and love to DONATE to the worthy, worthy cause and Aim... I know Marion and Marge were there... I feel them all the time... Love you, JIll

The Chiltons said...

Stand Bye for a youtube photo show of Saturdays event!

FYI there is about 12 minutes of photo's. Youtube will only allow 10. So you will soon see Parts 1 and 2. If you have the patience and care about the quality of the streaming video tomorrow morning we will have the full Video in its entirity through My little girls web site (Jada Rose). Stand bye

Troy-Jada's Dad.

Charlie Cooper said...

Troy- I was up waiting until midnight to give more meds. I couldn't wait until morning to view the video so I looked on youtube. It is AMAZING!!! Thank you so much for capturing the spirit of the event. I loved re-living the day through the pictures/video. It was such a special day to us because of everyone there. You are so AWESOME.---Angel

The Chiltons said...

Angel So sorry I couldn't get them published properly last night forcing you to find them yourself. I'm sorry they aren't perfect. The event itself deserves so much more than what I could contribute. They are listed on Jada's blog as part 1 and part 2. Feel free to obtain the embed code from youtube and put them on here! I cant tell you how much I enjoyed putting this together! Thanks for letting me do it.

Troy

Anonymous said...

Angel and Rob,
I came across some great information and wanted to pass it along to you. Glenn Doman's program helps retrain the brain to see, think, and develop motor skills. There are some amazing videos on youtube worth watching.
Hope all is well at home.
With lots of love
WX Family

Marilee said...

Troy, WOW just wow. Now that's what I've been waiting for. What a grand event with lots of smiles with precious Charlie. (Who are all those people?) Just amazing.
Thanks Troy!!!