CELEBRATION
Celebration of Life, and all of the blessings it brings
Please consider this an invitation to a celebration of life, my life, my family, all the people who have touched my life, and those whose lives I have touched. So, if you are one of those people (if you are reading this, you are), please mark your calendar and join us...
May 14th, 2023
4:00 – 9:00 PM
Anna Maria Island, FL
More details will be coming, but I wanted to get the date out so those of you coming from afar will have time to plan.
All my love,
Mara
NEW: MARA'S FUNDRAISER
FEBRUARY 2023
Mara Forges Ahead With Leiomyosarcoma
Thank you so much for your support.
August 2021
Mara qualified and began a clinical trial treatment: a once a week 10 hour infusion. Ongoing. She is grateful for this opportunity to add more time to find the good and great in her days. May we all be as inspired to realize there is no time to lose in living with such love for life.
May 2021
Round 3: chemo and radiation
Mara received news of new lesions and began a third round of treatment. She says,
"As I gear up for ROUND 3, in the fight for my life, I will face it head on and will win again and again and again if that is what I have to do. Don’t get me wrong, it is going to suck, and be hard and painful but it gives me more time on this earth to enjoy my beautiful life - then so be it...Go make it a GREAT day and remember that nothing is for sure, everything is temporary and you are always stronger than you ever imagined. xoxo Mara"
January 2021
Mara's "great days" living with Leiomyosarcoma.
That is not a typo. Mara embraces each day as a gift, no matter what shows up. Her mantra is "have a great day!!" It is a great day because she woke up and chooses to find any little thing of beauty.
August 2020
Round 2: Mara in Chemo
Because of COVID-19 Mara's MDA team advises her care with her FL medical team. Chemo begins on January 14, 2020, in preparation for surgery to remove metastasis Leiomyosarcoma lesions on her liver. Donations will support her many medical expenses not covered by insurance. Thank you for your continued care.
April 2019
The Surgical Team at MD Anderson
GRATEFUL Mara keeps saying thank you. She is deeply grateful to the people who saved her life. A HUGE THANKS to all of you for financially making it possible for her to seek the best medical care.
BOUNDLESS GRATITUDE
September 2019
To those who have thought of me, to those who have prayed, to those who have sent cards, sent food, sent money, sent flowers, to those who have spoken about me to others leading them to think of me, to those who have placed me on prayer circles leading others to pray for me, to those who have hugged me, smiled at me, helped me up when I couldn’t stand, to those who have cared for my children, sent books and journals, to those who have cried for me, to those who have walked and screamed out loud WHY???, to those who have rallied around my husband for me, passed emails about me, who have supported my family, to those who have travelled far to visit, and to those who have walked down the street to just say hello, to those who have walked slowly with me, who have cared for me in the hospital, who have given me medical care, to those who have bathed me and fed me, to those who have rubbed my back, driven me places, cut my hair, to those who have laughed with me, stood by me when I was scared, to those who have assured me that everything was going to be ok when I had doubt, to those who never wavered in their love for me.
I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I am grateful for each and every one of you and I hope and pray that you can feel and understand the amount of gratitude I have in my heart. There are no words, nothing I can say to make anyone understand, it is just an overwhelming amazing feeling that encompasses my whole being. And so, I am grateful for you all, and for all that you have done and do.
I vow that I will live my life to the fullest, and most importantly, that I will touch someone, support others, love unconditionally and help those in need. I will continue to grow and challenge myself and never forget the unending love I’ve received that will wash over me for all of my days to come.
With a grateful heart, love Mara
September 2019
A year later. The marvel of Mara Fulk. Follow along as Mara continues her remarkable recovery HERE. Image credit: Key 2 Life Training, Yakeitha Key Fields Fitch.
May 23, 2019
Bradenton Herald-Tribune writer Sara Nealeigh did a follow up on Mara, which includes a video by filmmaker Tiffany Tompkins. HERE. It's beautiful.
April 19, 2019
THANK YOU FOR HELPING THE FULK FAMILY!
Please know that they are grateful for every donation, every thought, and every prayer.
Mara is recovering from surgery and learning to live without a pancreas, spleen, 1/2 of her stomach, 2 feet of small intestines, and a handful of lymph nodes. Her portal vein was reconstructed, and the surgeons rerouted arteries and veins to compensate for the removal of the organs.
Photograph: "This is Dr. Diego Villalobos, a researcher, and doctor at MD Anderson and a friend of a parent at Center Montessori School. He stopped by to check on me today...it was so good to see him." - Mara, 4-19-19
April 12, 2019
An uplifting story about Mara from Sara Nealeigh, The Bradenton Herald. HERE.
Photograph - a hope-filled dinner out for Mara and Keith on the night before surgery, Houston, TX.
HEARTFUL THANKS!
GRATEFUL Mara is pictured with MDA lead surgeon at the Sarcoma Center, Dr. Roland. Mara is grateful to the surgical team who saved her life.
THANK YOU FOR HELPING THE FULK FAMILY!
There is a Celtic prayer referred to as the caim. It is a profound circling prayer. Imagine it as drawing an invisible circle around a person to create a protective sanctuary and to remind that person that they are safe and loved. That circle can also be imagined as the children in circle time each morning sending love and healing wishes to Mara.