Glad to Give Baking program

Glad to Give

I love to write about companies helping charity. Childhood cancer is a cause close to my heart after seeing my friend struggle with her toddler's cancer. So I was impressed after finding Glad's Glad to Give site. Glad helps you put together a bake sale for Cookies for Kids Cancer. Also, Glad matched all funds raised by Cookies for Kids Cancer in November and December 2009, up to $100,000. It may be too late for you to help in that part, but you can still hold a bake sale with the kit and give the funds to Cookies for Kids Cancer.

Cookies for Kids Cancer is a great charity. Here's a bit about them:
"Cookies for Kids' Cancer was created to raise awareness of and funds for pediatric cancer research. But it all started with a kid fighting cancer and his parents’ desire to help him and others.

When 2-year old Liam was diagnosed with a deadly form of pediatric cancer called Neuroblastoma, his family learned quickly it is a cancer that only about 30% of children survive. They were shocked to hear the reason for such terrible odds was directly related to how little money was being spent on research by both the government and the pharmaceutical industry. Pediatric cancer is the leading cause of death by disease for children under the age of 18. Why then is it not a priority to develop new and better treatments for the children of our nation and the world? It is this very question that prompted Liam’s mom and dad, Gretchen and Larry, to get involved and to do all they could to help save their son."

If you're not up to a bake sale or like me have no baking skill; you can buy cookies online:

Prayers please!

Please pray for my friend's little girl and her family. The little girl is under going experimental chemo for retinoblastoma (eye cancer). On the 12th they will know if the chemo is working. I am praying that the chemo is working, that there will be no long term side effects, and that the little girl remains the wonderful, sweet little girl she is. I'm not giving out too many personal details but I know every prayer is helpful and needed.

Also, I'd like to give a little information on retinoblastoma, so that others will know.
Retinoblastoma Info

What is it ~
Retinoblastoma is the most common eye cancer in children. It is a life-threatening cancer of the retina within the back of the eye. Retinoblastoma is generally discovered in babies between the ages of 6 and 24 months, although it can be found at earlier or later ages. Retinoblastoma occurs in approximately 1 in 15,000 live births, and it is estimated to affect approximately 250 to 300 children each year in the United States. Worldwide, about 5,000 children develop retinoblastoma
each year.

Who gets it ~
Retinoblastoma occurs equally in boys and girls and it is seen in all races. Retinoblastoma affects only one eye in about 70% of patients and it affects both eyes in 30% of patients. In some instances, there is a family history of retinoblastoma in a parent or relative, but in the majority of cases, there is no other member of the family affected with the tumor.

What causes it ~
The cause of retinoblastoma is unknown. It has not been related to nutrition, smoking, drinking, or any maternal problem during pregnancy. It is not related to environmental toxins. It can develop in an otherwise
healthy child despite a normal birth and
early development.

What does it look like ~
Retinoblastoma develops from a single affected cell in the retina and it is invisible at its inception. Later, a small white nodule is noted in the retina, but this is not visible to the parents and it does not affect the child at this point. With time, the tumor grows into a larger white vascular tumor that causes the child to painlessly lose vision and this can manifest with a drifting eye or an eye with a white or glassy-appearing pupil. At this point, the tumor is visible to the parents or grandparents and the child is typically taken to the doctor.