As Mother’s Day, 2013 approached, we knew we only had a limited amount of time left with our beloved Aunt Carol. As cousins who had always viewed our aunt as a second mother, we were intent on finding a way to celebrate her legacy and the impact she had on our lives, as well as find a way to heal during this difficult time. We decided to get together for a Mother’s Day run at a park that would be convenient to us. As this idea grew to a reality, we invited more family members to take part, and also decided to pool our money and make a donation in our aunt’s honor to the charity of her choice. In the end, on that beautiful spring day, we had more than 40 people show up, and raised over $2,000.
Carol attended our first Mother’s Day run and cheered us on from the sidelines. She passed away just a few weeks later and we felt so glad to be spend time with her until the end. We thought often about how lucky we were to have a close-knit family with the resources available to keep her in-home as she received care. Our goal at Cousins for Carol is to do whatever we can to help others in similar situations. We understand firsthand the emotional and financial burden of watching a loved one succumb to cancer. We hope to help ease some of the financial burdens of families coping with cancer in whatever way we can.