Send Mark to NEWSTART!

My husband Mark has pushed long and hard for his entire life on behalf of clients, friends, and family. As a self-employed graphic designer and communication director, he has spent decades sitting in front of a computer with little opportunity to rest or relax, even on weekends when he’s been deeply involved in activities at church and in service to others. He hasn’t raised his service rates for as far back as I can remember, largely because he works mostly with nonprofits and startups.

Since our wedding more than 30 years ago, he has never taken a non-working vacation. Wherever we have gone, he has taken his work with him. He has routinely gotten calls over the years from clients with emergency requests to have projects “done yesterday” for some deadline or event. We tried to break away on a cruise once and ended up with frantic requests from a client at ports that meant we spent port visits looking for libraries where he could hook up to wifi and keep working.

Stress and lack of physical activity have added up over the years, especially recently. He ended up in the ER three times over the past couple of months, twice with atrial fibrillation. The second time they had to try to reset his heart five times—three times with meds and twice with high-charged shock paddles. He has high blood pressure and is on numerous medications that he could be off of if he could spend some time in a preventive health program that could literally save his life.

There is an opportunity for him to attend the 18-day NEWSTART program at the end of November. NEWSTART is a "physician monitored, scientifically researched lifestyle-change program based on eight fundamental principles proven to help you achieve optimum health."

Mark is on my medical insurance, which pays only a small fraction of the cost, not including the actual program fees—because it’s “preventive health” rather than “treatment.” We’re stretched thin beyond belief for many reasons including the fact that I pay for my own expensive, non-deductible commute to my job in another state (mostly a labor of love) and still are supporting two children in college.

I’m trying to gather and set aside enough money to send Mark to NEWSTART on fairly short notice because I've increasingly sensed his fragility over the past couple of months. It's complicated because the cost is more than just the fees to attend the program. It also includes transportation and lost wages since he's self-employed and can't work during the 18-day program—which is exactly what he needs.

Many of you have benefited from Mark’s willingness to drop everything and make your projects happen, often requiring him to work through endless nights and weekends. He almost never says no. He often does favors for friends at little or no cost.

I’m inviting you to join me in giving Mark an early Christmas present to show him how much he means to all of us. ♥️