GIST 31 Wishes…what does that mean?

Every day, whether consciously or not, we make a wish for the future. Something we hope happens, something we hope doesn’t, something we really want. We at LRG HQ are no exception and we got to thinking that we could turn some of these hopes and goals into something positive and uplifting. Hence, the GIST 31 wishes campaign was born.

During the month of December, we will highlight one GIST wish each day of the month. We’ve named this campaign #GIST31wishes because darn it, we GISTers love GIST word play. ;)

snowflakeEach day, we will post the wishes you have sent our way on social media, with the hope that they will inspire others, bring awareness to GIST and the Life Raft Group, and bring us closer together as a community.

Each week, we will summarize here on our website the awesome wishes you hoping for this year.

Please send in your GIST wishes (they can be one sentence, one paragraph-you decide!) to ekristoff@liferaftgroup.org and we will post it on our LRG social media sites and/or website. And if you’re on Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/etc be sure to follow our pages and share our posts so we can spread the #GIST31wishes hashtag and most importantly, awareness.

We are so excited to read everyone’s wishes and work together towards a better future.

Here are the GIST 31 Wishes you have shared with us this week:

Day 17: My wish is to hear people chanting, We found the cure for GIST! in different languages all around the world. I hope it happens very, very soon! – Eola Bakhru, LRG Program Associate

Day 18: My greatest wish is for GIST patients to survive until we find a cure. That means using what we know now, including seeing a specialist, using mutational testing, assessing risk status and tying that to needed preventive treatments, tactical use of surgery, managing side effects, monitoring and managing drug compliance and providing access to known treatments to name some key elements. To die because there is nothing left to do is a tragedy. To die because we have not done everything reasonable available is both a tragedy and a disgrace. – Norman Scherzer, Executive Director of the Life Raft

Day 19: It is my wish that more alternative and nutritional therapies will be considered to combat side effects and to support the general wellbeing and immune systems of those affected by GIST. – Lorraine Ramadan, LRG Finance Director

Day 20: My GIST wish is that each one of us GIVES a little more this upcoming year.
Giving does not only have to be a monetary gift in the form of donations, giving can be just taking that extra second to say hello, asking if you can help in anyway, or giving some of your time.

As a new member of the Life Raft Group and attending my first Life Fest this year, I was amazed and inspired to see how much this community gives back to each other. The support, the greetings, the smiles – it felt like an extended family. The members of the LRG community are here to help, to give their time, to be supportive. This is why I joined the group, to give back. Let’s make that wish for more giving come true in 2015! – Thomas Cordasco, LRG Marketing and Communications Associate

Day 21: My wish is to see every state in the US represented with one (or more!) LRG leaders so that no matter where they live, GISTers have a network close to home to lean on. – Mildred Menos, LRG Assistant Program Director

Day 22: My wish is that treatment guidelines like those from the NCCN and ESMO would more clearly state that GIST is in fact a family of diseases made up of different subtypes, some which respond better to different treatments, and so GIST patients should be seen by an expert. – Jim Hughes, LRG Board Member

Day 23: My wish is that there will be more awareness about rare diseases like GIST that will lead to more funds for research. – Michele Fetchko, LRG Donor Management Associate

View the GIST Wishes Days 1-8

View the GIST Wishes Days 9-16

View the GIST Wishes Days 24-31