As this weekend of Thanksgivng is heading toward a close and the season of GIVING is drawing near, I was wondering if those that read this thread, have added the OCF to their list of places to give.

Many of us "old timers" have an inkling of what it costs to run this website and the Oral Cancer Foundation itself, but we really don't know the half of it, I'm sure.

We are all bombarded by phone and mail solicitations at this time of year for many worthwhile organizations. Some of those that we give to have a great deal of meaning to us and many we just give to because we give every year. The OCF doesn't solicit!!! You won't be getting name labels from Brian. I should only live long enough to use all the return address labels I have on my desk.

Last April I received generous donations from 17 OCF members to sponsor me in the 2nd Annual Oral Cancer Walk in NYC. They went a long way toward reaching the total that I raised, which was over $3,600.

The OCF cannot survive on the money raised from this event alone. If you have received just one good word of advice, one heartfelt word of compassion or one good suggestion to help get you through the day, then maybe you can find it in your heart to make a gift to the OCF. Every little bit helps. It doesn't have to be $100. If every member of the OCF gave just $5 ot $10, it would make a tremendous impact on meeting expenses.

It's real easy..just click here http://www.ocfstore.org/SearchResults.asp?Cat=1
And don't forget to shop Amazon.com from the link on the top of the forum home page. Tell your friends, too.

Wishing everyone Happy Holidays.

Jerry

Just to add to Jerry's post, I sent the Amazon link to everyone in my family and all my friends and asked them to please remember to use that link when they are doing their holiday shopping on Amazon. And, I keep reminding them in person....

Thanks Jerry for bringing this up. It is that time of year when people think of giving. The big organizations really take in the donations in December when good will towards man seems to be in the air. Unfortunately smaller non profits like OCF don't get the exposure or money of others. We are just like them, an IRS registered 501(c)3 charity, and your donations to the foundation are tax deductible. I hope that you will consider us as an organization worthy of your support. The work that OCF does is much more than just this message board and web site, and there is much left undone... I promise that your charitable donations will be used with purpose and be meaningful. Unlike large organizations very little of OCF's income goes towards overhead expenses and salaries, with the bulk of the funding going directly to service the cause. Just think of this, not only will you be helping an organization that is directly related to a disease that you are very familiar with, but unlike the big cancer organizations you won't hear of us spending 30% or more of our money on fundraising efforts.

For donations under $500 your receipt from the OCF web store, or your cancelled check is all you need for the IRS. Larger donations will get a letter of receipt and thanks which becomes your IRS record.

Just bringing this back up to the top in the hope that more people will read this thread.

Jerry

I want to share the email and Christmas card insert I have come up with and sent out. I used some of the posts from the OCF site as well as some of the important data, so if you see some of your own words coming back to you, thanks for your input.

Feel free to use and edit as you see fit to help.

All of you know of my personal battle with oral cancer last year. Oral cancer is in the closet and needs special attention in its own right. It is not like all other cancers by the very nature of its location. It takes away the most basic and necessary functions of the lives that it destroys.

It goes without saying that life can spin out of control at times and the best we can do is plant our feet in the sand, hold hands and help each other get through the spinning. One of the nurses here at the University of Tennessee Cancer Center told me that the body is a wonderful healing machine and that the mouth heals very quickly and thankfully she is correct. It's been over a year since my chemotherapy treatments and surgery, and 11 months since I finished my last radiation treatment and I am doing very well with 2 clear scans under my belt. The radiation was by far the worst part of my overall treatment but I got through it.

The second biggest help outside of my family, friends and co-workers has been the Oral Cancer Foundation website. The information contained on this site is squarely focused on Head and Neck Cancers. There is a support message board which can be far more important than even the American Cancer Society. The message board is chock full of information, assistance and support, given by people who were going through cancer or helping someone with cancer. Each person there has been touched by the effect of this grossly disgusting disease, from young adults to older adults, from all over the world.

If I was ever an advocate, I would be now for Oral Cancer. This is a dreadful disease and the treatment and surgery can be very ugly. The importance of the board is paramount, especially for people who are unable to talk after surgery to have a place to go to obtain information, compassion and support by the very people who understand what they're going through.

The Oral Cancer Foundation and Oral Cancer in general needs more press. Approximately 34,000 people in the US will be newly diagnosed with oral cancer in 2007. This is the second year in a row in which there has been an increase in the rate of occurrence, this time of about 11% over last year.Worldwide the problem is far greater, with new cases annually exceeding 481,000.

It won't hurt a bit. Help us fight Cancer.

If you buy gifts for the holidays from Amazon, please help us in our fight against Oral Cancer. Oral Cancer claims one life every hour of every day in the U.S. You can help make a difference!

The Oral Cancer Foundation (http://www.oralcancerfoundation.org/) is a national public service non-profit entity.

You can support the OCF by shopping at Amazon by using this link
(http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect-home/oralcancerfou-20)
at NO cost or obligation to you!!

Happy Holidays All !!!

Kevin

Kevin,

That is a great idea. It should help many members reach out to their family and friends to help infuse some cash into the OCF coffers.

Happy Holidays

Jerry

Kevin, that was really well put, and I thank you for the effort. I have written something to send out to our friends, neighbors, and Ingrid's business associates from Astra Zeneca, the only addition is that after the line about Amazon I put:

If you are thinking of donating to a charity this year, please think of OCF. You will get the same deductions from the IRS as any of the big name charities, and you will be helping an organization that spends more than 90 cents of every donated dollar directly on the cause vs. fundraising or G&A expenses. The link to do so securely on the web is http://www.oralcancerfoundation.org/membership/membership.htm

Also do not be surprised if you get an donation "ask letter" from OCF in the next couple of weeks in your email. I am sending a letter out to people who are registered on the message board, and to people who have left their email address on our newsletter link.

Glad to help. I'd like to see a good chunk of the hosting fees taken care of by this. After Brian described what type of system OCF is running I have a very good idea of the costs, staggering.

I have had quite a few positive responses to my holiday request, all we can do now it wait and see.

Kevin

On a much teenier scale, have left a small donation with my daughter.
I didn't get the opportunity to get to the OCF office whilst in CA, but she lives in Huntington Beach and has promised to call in one day after work.

Brenda

Have her call me if she wants to meet. The Newport Beach address is a mailing address not a physical location. (I could never afford to live in Newport.... let alone rent office space there. After Beverly Hills, it is the most expensive bit of real estate in So Cal. Thank you for the donation. Every little bit helps, and more than that, it means to me you find this site and the work that OCF does in Washington and elsewhere of value, and you care about helping others.