Tuesday Thoughts

This morning I drove to Sarasota for the annual Penn State scholarship breakfast. When David was at Penn State, the SW Florida alumni group gave him a small scholarship each year that helped greatly with the cost of books. During this time, I became good friends with many of the folks and have maintained a relationship with them. Every year during football season, the faithful gather at a local sports bar to watch the games and cheer the team on.

The program was presented by three high school students from Port Charlotte High School. All three were representing the Model United Nations, a club which competes with 30 other area schools in a two-day mock United Nations simulation. Students must have a working knowledge of current history and advanced skills in research and public speaking. Their group has one the regional competition for the last six years. In fact, the leader told us that they were asked not to return this year. I'm not sure if that was in gest, or if the powers that be wanted to give other groups a chance to win.

They have traveled to Yale, Harvard, Georgia Tech, and some other universities to compete, and they always win. It was wonderful to sit and listen to these young people speak with confidence and poise. And they were dressed in business suits. There was no fluff here. It was reassuring to hear and see them.
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On another note, Anthony is scheduled to have his bone marrow transplant on Thursday, Feb. 8 at 10:30 in the morning. He is at Children's Hospital in Cincinnati. He has completed his chemo, and he has not been as sick as the doctors expected. He had radiation either today or yesterday. He had to go to another hospital for the radiation. While there, the power went out because of the cold, and they had to start all over. He is in quite a bit of pain right now.

His spirits are good. You can visit him here. Where it says "visit," type in anthonynegrin, and it will take you to his page.
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This note is from Ben's wife. "Hey everyone, Thanks for your continued prayers. Ben has lost about 20 lbs of the water weight, so we're thrilled about that. The incision is healing well, and he's no longer needing to use much pain medication. His dad should arrive tomorrow while I'm at work, so we're looking forward to seeing him. My throat is much better as of Friday, so another praise!

Please pray as I transition back into work. It's a little overwhelming, but will probably be good for me to be back. "

This was dated Jan. 29. I haven't heard anything new.