Little Pink Houses of Hope

Leah Suminski passed away on June 13, 2020 after a long battle with breast cancer. This year, on September 9, she would have been 38 years old. Our goal is to earn $100 for every year of her life by holding a 5k/1 mile race in her memory, followed by a splash in the ocean (or lake, river, pool, puddle). Due to COVID-19 this is a virtual race, but looking forward to an in-person race in the future. Sometimes when families are dealing with cancer they feel overwhelmed and alone. Last September, Leah, Sam and the boys went on a free week-long trip to Michigan, paid for by The Little Pink Houses of Hope. There they met several other families dealing with the exact same things that they were. It was so comforting to be around people with the same fears, challenges, hopes, and dreams. In Michigan, they found a new family--their “Little Pink Family”. Leah wanted people to donate to Little Pink Houses of Hope in lieu of funeral services when she passed. I know it would make her so happy to know that more families get to enjoy a week away in her memory. Thank you for considering donating to her cause!

Paddle for Pink Houses:
Hello, 
My name is Amy Gage. I am a Key West local and the Office Admin for St. Paul's Episocopal Church of Key West.
Also, as of this year, I have been honored to become a Retreat Coordinator & Volunteer for the non-profit group
"Little Pink Houses of Hope".

WHAT LPHOH DOES: Provides FREE week long beach retreats for breast cancer patients and their families through the kind donations of homes, time, talent and treasure. We believe a cancer diagnosis does not just affect the patient, but the entire family. Every beach retreat is designed to help families relax, reconnect and rejuvenate during the cancer journey.

MY GOAL!
May 3, 2014, I am entering the Key West Paddleboard Classic, which is a 12 mile paddle race around Key West. In doing so, I hope to raise awareness for this amazing organization and
raise funds to help supplement the cost of at least 10 of our 12 families attending our 2014 Key West Retreat the week of
June 22. LPHOH has determined it takes $563.00 and a home to sponsor a family on a retreat.

I am starting this campaign a bit late for I was not sure if I would be up to the challenge after incurring a biking accident a couple of weeks ago. I needed to make sure I was physically ready for this. I have paddled through the pain and just keep telling myself that these ladies wake up everyday with different aches, pains and ailments from their treatments and must carry on, so as should I.

Paddleboarding is a fun and intregal part of the families retreat week. It is due to the generosity of Lazy Dog Paddle Shack http://lazydog.com/ and an invite from LPHOH's to join them last year that I have developed a serious paddleboard bug. My header photo is of last year's retreat with the LPHOH volunteers, families and Lazy Dog staff (who donated a whole morning of instruction and equipment to the families).

I am also doing this to honor two of our "Pink Moms", Barbara and Bobbie, from last year's KW retreat who succumbed to their battle within a week of each other last month. It is because of the retreat their families will have loving and sunny memories to hold on to forever.

The event is May 3 but I have not applied a deadline to contribute. If you have never seen Key West , here is a link to see the race coarse.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyPEyz0GYJc

Any and all donations on my "GoFundMe" campaign will go directly to Little Pink Houses of Hope. 

So, please, look into your hearts and get behind me ( as I hope the wind is) on this campaign. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments.