RACING FOR A CHANGE
Marathons, Bandanas and a Cure
Cashea Arrington decided to enhance the lives of others. The young Georgia native, a die-hard vegetarian who has been living with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma for the last few months, understands every nuance of a disease that must be dealt with on a daily basis.
R
“I was diagnosed on November 13th,” Cashea said when I caught up with this busy young woman. Then she added, “Friday the 13th
ather than putting her life on hold during cancer treatments, 21-year-old
“I was trying on hats and ball
caps—anything to cover my head,” Cashea said. “Then I went through my sock drawer and found four bandanas. I knew that this would really work for a lot of people.”
,”
with a wry laugh. “At this point, I’ve done six rounds of chemo and my next round starts in June.”
Enduring the chemotherapy was one thing, but when Cashea began to lose her hair—on her 21st birthday, no less—she felt she had to do something to make herself feel better about her appearance. Rejecting wigs as expensive, un- comfortable, and obvious, Cashea needed an acceptable alterna- tive. When she found it, she instinc- tively knew that many others must feel same way.
Cashea jumped right in with both feet, literally, and planned to make a bandana for every mile she logged in her training for an upcoming marathon to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Setting her goal at 200 bandanas for as many cancer patients, she spread the word to friends and family via email, Face- book, and her own blog. The response has been overwhelming. Not only has Cashea surpassed her original goal, her idea has grown to include people all over the U.S. and even some foreign countries.
“A man in Germany is sending me fabric to make bandanas,” Cashea, who has personally sewn and personalized 150 bandanas to this point, commented. “My new goal is to have 1,000 bandanas distributed by the time I start my second round of chemo this summer.”
Cancer patients can request their bandana directly from Cashea or through friends and family—and they can choose their favorite color! Many ask to have the ban- dana personalized with a name or a saying, something Cashea is happy to do. She is hoping that as people recover from their can- cer—hair grows back and lives get back to normal—they will “pay it forward” and share both the ban- dana and the spirit that goes with it.
“The favorite color seems to be camouflage,” Cashea said. “I think that’s appropriate because it is the color used when people are fight- ing. We’re basically fighting, too.”
Note: Cashea Arrington can be reached via Facebook and at
racingforachange.blogspot.com.
Cashea just doesn’t quit! She is also teaming up with Spiritjump.org
and Cards 4 Cancer. She’s actively
looking for team leaders in every state and, of course, donations for her marathon, as well as money and/or fabric for bandanas. If you want to help Cashea please visit her website for more information.
ADistinctive style 35
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80