A Sherri Update and Request
To my lovely friends and family
who have patiently listened to (or read) me babble about my recovery every several months:
Two and a half weeks ago marks a
year from my last surgery. On April 15th,
2011, I remember wondering if the nerve surgery I was about to receive would
bring me to walk normally again. At the
time, I couldn’t lift my left foot and needed to wear a brace to assist with
the foot drop. I remember trying to set
my expectations to be hopeful but practical.
That day I also had nine four-inch screws removed from my knees. After months of having my IT band rub against
them when I bent my knees, I can’t explain how wonderful it felt to have them
out of my body.
In so many ways this feels like
ages ago. A dream even. To quickly recap – a few short weeks after my
surgery, I began to slightly move my foot upwards. Up until that point every morning I would
wake up, look down at my feet, and concentrate as hard as I could to raise the
left one. I vividly remember the first
morning that it moved... I thought I was
imagining it at first. The rush of hope through my body was amazing. Shortly after I changed braces (to a smaller
brace that allowed me to wear the same size shoe on both feet!) and not long
after that, I was braceless! And, my knees felt great without the screws.
So what is going on now, over a
year later? To celebrate how fortunate I feel, I’ve decided to do a triathalon - a month from today!! Okay, so it’s a little triathalon: 5k run, 10
mile bike ride, and ⅓ mile swim. But
it’s a huge deal for me! a) because of
all my body has been through over the past year and a half, and b) because I
literally hadn’t run a mile since I realized (probably around 4th
grade) that I could actually walk the “mile run” in grade school. Sherri Lane = not a runner. But I started training about a month ago and
am really making headway! Full disclosure,
I may not be able to run the whole 5k because of my knees, but my goal is to
finish - pushing myself as hard as I can without screwing up any progress (no
pun intended, hehe).
Regardless, it’s a fun
challenge! And I’ve decided to do it for
a cause. Many of you have already been
so generous to give to one of the two organizations I spend time
working/volunteering for (Accion and AMIGOS), and I in no way am writing to put
pressure on you to give more if you are not interested! BUT :) for those of you who are itching
for a good cause and a compelling story (and have a few bucks lying around to
share), I think I have a good idea for you:
My good friend Kendra Harrison
has put a lot of heart and work into the orphanage “The Hogar Infantíl
Visitación De Jesús” in the rural area of San Jose de las Matas, Dominican
Republic. This orphanage was founded by
Kendra’s friend Rosa Núñez, who gained her experience working with children for
9 years in another orphanage. While
working for the other orphanage, Rosa learned of 2 children, Manuel (15) and
Jordalisa (11), who were undergoing abuse and neglect at their home in the
countryside. Jordalisa and Manuel are both blind and Manuel could not walk or
speak at that time. The children were living in extreme hunger and poverty, and
Jordalisa was the caretaker of Manuel and their 3 younger siblings. Rosa was
appalled and deeply saddened by the situation of these children. Although she
wanted to help them, she could not because the orphanage where she worked would
not accept disabled children. (Read more about Rosa’s story here.)
Rosa has since started a
successful orphanage, but the success is not without challenge and, of course,
expenses! For example, 9 of the 14 children
need to pay to go to school, since the local public schools do not accept kids
without documents. I am proposing that we all help send these kids to
school. $30 a month covers tuition, books,
supplies, and lunch. For 9 kids that
adds up to $2700 a year. It’s a lot of
money for the orphanage to handle, which is where we come in. Here’s a few numbers for you:
$30 - send one child to school
for a month
$300 - send one child to school for a (ten month) school
year
I could go through the cliche “it’s only a dollar a day” or
2 weeks worth of Dunkin Donuts, or a nice dinner
out, or that new shirt you
really shouldn’t buy anyway. (I guess I
just did the cliche, didn’t I? oops :))
But it’s a great cause, and it would make Kendra, Rosa and me very very
happy and grateful.
If
19 of us each give $30, we’ll send all 9 kids to school for a year! How awesome would that be? I’m all about turning lemons into lemonade,
and this is a great way to continue to do so with my accident. Will you join me?
If you’d like to contribute,
please respond to this email and mail checks made out to “Hogar Infantíl
Visitación De Jesús” to my home address:
Sherri Lane
22 Suffolk St #2
Cambridge, MA 02139
Thank you all again so much for your interest in my recovery. I am beyond grateful for your prayers,
thoughts, and care. We all have a ton to
be thankful for, which is pretty nice to remember sometimes.
Lots and lots of love,
Sherri
