This Wednesday, August 22, is a day of celebration, #TeamTory. It’s the day we finally get to deliver on a goal of Tory’s as she fought her battle with cancer.Weakened by the disease and by many rounds of treatment, Tory needed rest during chemotherapy. We arranged for her to receive it in a private room and while lying on a bed – rather than in a traditional chair — giving her the opportunity to relax and to sleep when she needed it.
The experience was a game-changer. Tory vowed, to me and in a text her girlfriend Deb, that we’d fundraise once she got better so Sunnybrook could provide more beds to patients and they could feel the comfort she did. One bed – that was her wish.
This week we get to fulfill that wish. But not with one bed. With eight. EIGHT!!
Because of the success of The Tory Day Fund, we’re able to make life for patients fighting this merciless disease a little more comfortable. Rather than sitting in uncomfortable gray chairs, patients at the Odette Centre at Sunnybrook will rest in brightly coloured, state-of-the-art chairs that can fully recline.
There’s a scene in the documentary Long Time Running, which chronicles the farewell tour of the Tragically Hip, that I love. It’s with Gord Downie and he explains why he
chooses to greet his friends, family, bandmates and others with a kiss on the lips. He also explains why he tells people “I love you” more than ever. He told it to Bobby Orr, a hero of his, while they were speaking on the phone. There was a long, awkward pause after he said it. Gord then smiles at the camera and says he likes to think he heard Bobby say it back.
I think of that scene a lot when I’m asked how I made it through the year-plus since Tory died. No, I haven’t made kissing people on the lips a habit (maybe after a couple drinks). But I have made a conscious effort of telling people I love them.
Maybe effort is the wrong word to use. Truth is there are a lot of people to love, and a lot of reasons to love them – so it hasn’t been any effort at all.
Starting this Wednesday I have eight more reasons to love the people around me. It’s because of you, your generosity and your love that we get to celebrate. You donated, you bought tickets to Tory’s Night of Nonsense, and you found ways to give even more.
So on Wednesday when we finally get to see the eight new chairs we funded, I’ll think a lot about Tory and my love for her. I’ll think about her desire to see more patients find comfort. And I’ll think of you, and thank you for making the day a highlight of my life.
Have a great weekend.
J.
xo
P.S. We’re less than two months away from this year’s Tory’s Night of Nonsense, the fundraising event that caps our 2018 campaign. I’d love to see you there – so buy your tickets today, if you can. Thanks.