Hey Everyone,

Ok, so this past weekend was the Relay for Life here in Tsawwassen. That's why there was no post on Saturday or Sunday night. We had a Hannah's Heroes Team involved again this year though we had a little smaller team this year then last year. However, this time Kathie was there and even Allie did some laps. It was a beautiful night and we enjoyed warmer temps then we had last year. The event started at 7:00pm Saturday night and lasted until 7:00 the next morning. The survivors took the first lap but Kathie decided she didn't want to walk with them. It would have been to hard to manage for her. However, we joined up after that and started walking. There was some fun event for younger kids in the centre and Allie was kept busy while we walked around. Soon after the sun set it was time to light the luminaries...

With Amazing Grace (on bagpipe) being played in the background the candles were lit and the lights darkened. It was a surreal scene and one of great emotion. We gathered at the luminaries that had Hannah's name and cried and remembered. There were also a couple for Kathie and her father Don. We also noticed one for Kathie's older brother Dale that died from a brain tumor back in 1969, and also Helen Green, Kathie's aunt. We spent quite a few moments there just remembering them all before we felt it was time to get back to the relay and do some laps.

Kathie stayed for another while and then took Dorothy and Allie home about 11:30. I stayed at the track and continued with Debbie and Glen. Even though Kathie was not there, she stayed in touch. A couple of phone calls and some text messages and it was like she was there. Even though she was home in a comfy bed, she couldn't sleep. She wanted to be out on the track walking with us. We pushed on through the night and finished up the Relay. All in all it was a good event and we're happy we were there. We'll have a team there each year so next time, if you're around, please join us.

I made it back home about 8:00 Sunday morning and got right to bed. A few hours sleep and I was OK to go for the remainder of the day. Not that we had a big day planned but I couldn't very well, sleep the day away. Well, I could have...  I wanted to also thank Jim and Diana Lipski for sending us up a couple of shirts from their own Relay earlier this year. It has names of many of the kids that passed away from DIPG and it was an honor for me to wear it. It made me feel like I was part of something bigger. In turn we'll be sending down a couple of shirts from our upcoming Jog for the Jug in June. More on that coming soon.

We came across a wonderful treasure tonight while getting Allie ready for bed. It's something was bought for Allie by Hannah. It's a Build-A-Bear that Hannah had us make for her sister. It has a recorded message that plays when you press the button on the hand. It says in a clear voice that is unmistakably Hannah, "I Love you Allie-Bean". It was so wonderful to hear her voice again so clear and like she was standing there. The voice message greeting on our phone still has Hannah's voice as does the one on Kathie's Cell. We just can't and won't change it. We have recorded it in case there is a problem with the phone system or something but we like it there. We get mixed feedback on the messages. Some people think we should change and others like to hear it. It's not likely to be changed anytime soon.

Lots of Love,

Tore, Kathie, Allie, and beautiful Angel Hannah