To see my video go to: http://www.onetruemedia.com/sharedp=56b0ecb4f5a01828ae552a&skin_id=1702&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=text_url

Another year has quickly passed. As most of you know this has been a very difficult year for our family. Sadly, Colin’s mom lost her battle with cancer in January. Lauren and Katherine miss their Nan very much and speak of her often. She was a tremendous support to us and our battle against Cystic Fibrosis. In true Mary Ann spirit, she asked that donations be made in her memory to the CF Foundation upon her passing. The outpouring of support we received was truly amazing. Mary Ann was an inspiration to so many and she inspires us to carry on each day. We are so grateful to each and every one of you that recently donated, and wanted to update you on Lauren’s progress. Lauren is now six years old and started kindergarten this past fall. Lauren also played soccer and basketball and will soon begin softball. Recently, she was very excited to lose her front teeth. Lauren loves to be outside riding her bike, playing with her friends, and running around with her sister, Katherine. She’s also taught herself to whistle. The only thing that slows Lauren down is her battle with Cystic Fibrosis, the #1 fatal genetic disease in this country. Starting kindergarten was a major milestone for Lauren because in the 1950's, few children with cystic fibrosis lived to attend elementary school. Thanks to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and the generous support it has received over the years, many medications and treatments have been developed which have helped Lauren tremendously. Each day Lauren does treatments and takes medications necessary to keep her lungs clear without ever complaining. She never gets a break from this disease. We are very proud of all that she has accomplished in spite of CF. We are again writing to ask you to support us as we raise money to find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis (CF). This will be our seventh year participating in the Great Strides walk for a cure. CF is a degenerative lung and digestive disease affecting over 30,000 Americans. Over time it gets worse until the lungs fail. There currently is no cure. In Lauren’s short lifetime we’ve seen the life expectancy for people with CF go from 30 to 37 years. We are grateful that this number continues to improve, but it also means that half of the people with CF don’t live to 37. Too many young lives are still being lost to this disease. All the money we raise will go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The Foundation recently earned four out of four possible stars for achieving excellence in fiscal responsibility. With this top rating, the Foundation outperforms a majority of non-profits in America with respect to fiscal management, according to Charity Navigator. In fact, 90 cents of every dollar raised is available to fund research, care, and education. Overall Lauren’s health has been good this past year. Her lungs have remained clear of infection. This is important because lung infections in people with CF cause permanent damage and 90% of the people with CF succumb to this disease because of damage to their lungs. Cystic fibrosis can also cause severe problems with the digestive system. The thick sticky mucus caused by this disease blocks Lauren’s pancreas from releasing enzymes needed for the absorption of nutrients. Lauren has always been on medication for severe reflux and has always had difficulty eating and keeping food down. On May 31, 2006 Lauren had surgery to have a feeding tube placed in her stomach. Lauren is still 100% fed using a feeding tube. Due to her difficulties with eating, we will be taking her to an intensive eight week feeding program in Baltimore this summer. Our goal is that she will be able to eat lunch with her classmates in the fall.

This year we will be participating in two area walks as well as the walk in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. There are several ways you can help: 1. We’d love for you to come out and walk with Lauren’s Lifesavers on Saturday, May 16th in Media, PA or on Sunday, May 17th in Valley Forge, PA. It’s always a good time and lunch will be provided at the end of the walk. Please call us at (610) 495-9615 or email cblack8@comcast.net if you have any questions. 2. Become a team leader for Lauren’s Lifesavers and invite your family, friends, neighbors and co-workers to join you for the walk. You can do this at any Great Strides walk in any state in the country. We already have several team leaders for our Valley Forge walk and an entire team in Cincinnati, Ohio. 3. If you are unable to walk, you can be a Ghost Walker by asking for sponsors to support our team, Lauren’s Lifesavers. We can send you a form to do this. 4. You can make a donation and sponsor Lauren directly. Please make your check payable to “Cystic Fibrosis Foundation” and return it to us in the enclosed envelope. Your donation is 100% tax deductible and 90 cents of every dollar goes fund research, care, and education. 5. You can register for the walk or make a donation online by going to Lauren’s Great Strides web page: http://www.cff.org/Great_Strides/LaurenBlack

6. To view our Great Strides video, please go to www.albertlandscaping.com and click on the Cystic Fibrosis link. There you will find the video and the link to our Great Strides page.

If you decide to join our walk team, there are several easy ways to get sponsors and help us to reach our goal. Email us at cblack8@comcast.net and we can send you a copy of a letter and/or the link above.

1. Email the link to our video and our Great Strides page to your contacts. They can donate online. 2. Ask your family, friends, neighbors and co-workers to sponsor you. If you want to do a letter writing or email campaign, we’d be glad to help. 3. Have a dress down day at work. We can get you stickers to give to supporters. We can also get posters to advertise the day. What the future holds for Lauren we don’t know. Presently, she is doing well. However, this disease progresses differently in everybody. At some point, this disease will start affecting Lauren’s lungs. This is why we are asking you to support the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation so that one day, hopefully soon, CF will no longer stand for Cystic Fibrosis, it will stand for Cure Found, and Lauren, and thousands like her, will get a break from this disease.