I am once again walking in the Jimmy Fund Walk to raise money so Dana Farber can find a cure for cancer and continue to provide the best patients care available today. I am also walking selfishly for the 60+ people posted on my collage of "People I Walk For." See if you recognize anyone in my collage posted on my web page.
I want to thank the hundreds of people who have supported me in the past and continue to support me today. Last year alone together you raised $12,000 for the Jimmy Fund and Dana Farber. Each of you who donated, whether it was $1 or $100, are hero's to me. Every penny goes to a great cause, research for cancer or patient care for those fighting the battle.
As I explain here why I walk there are at least 8 people i know who are currently battling cancer. We all know someone with cancer now and we certainly all remember a friend or loved one we have lost to cancer. From the early age of seven I had my first encounter with cancer when I lost my father. That was my first experience. During the next 73 years I would lose more family members, friends and colleagues than I care to remember. To me this fight is personal. I recall when I first became a police chief and attended one of the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police monthly meetings. For clarification the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police have supported the Jimmy Fund since 1953. At that meeting Mike Andrews, who had retired from the Red Sox and was working with Dana Farber, introduced a doctor who at the time was specializing in a specific type of childhood cancer. Being a father of 4 young children I listened intently. The Doctor explained the type of cancer he was working on had an 80% mortality rate for these children. I cannot remember the specific type of cancer this doctor was talking about. However, I do recall attending another chiefs meeting about 12 years later and the children's cancer the original doctor spoke about now had a survival rate of 80% and the mortality was down to 20%.. This was do to cancer research.
I don't know how many more years I can walk but I will continue to support the Jimmy Fund and Dana Farber in their efforts to find a cure and provide special are to cancer patients. I am asking you once gain to please join me in supporting the Jimmy Fund by sending me a donation.
If you would be kind enough to donate to my walk you can log into “Jimmy Fund” and go to “Team Police Chiefs” and click on Michael Healy or if you would rather you can go directly to my personal web page and see exactly all those I walk for which is located at:
http://danafarber.jimmyfund.org/goto/MichaelHealy
If you feel more comfortable contributing by check please make it payable to Jimmy Fund and send it to me at PO Box 51, West Dennis, MA 02670.
Thank you for supporting my Jimmy Fund Walk fundraising efforts. Together, we can defy cancer
