Toronto

    The Clewis family arrived in Toronto on Wednesday, Sept. 8th. They were all quite amazed with the six lanes of traffic going in both directions. They made it to their campsite in Scarborough which is not exactly like the beautiful sites they had on the way down. It is expensive.....pay for everything, even sewage disposal at $10.00 per visit and unfortunately there is no internet.......we have to find another way around that problem!! Any suggestions?????
    On Thursday they got a car rented from Enterprise......a Ford Focus, and they made it to the Hospital for Sick Children for the 1:30 p.m. appointment. Mason had a CT scan and then Jade and Justin met with the surgeon, Dr. Gerstle. They found him to be a very friendly and understanding person and they had a good talk with him about the intended surgery, the expectations, the negative possibilities and the possible benefits of some "alternative treatments". Dr. Gerstle assured them that even if Mason were to lose a good portion of his lungs the prognosis is still good. He said that children rebound dramatically and in a short time it becomes hard to tell that they have lost so much lung capacity. He was also quite frank that there are no guarantees that at some point the cancer may not re-appear. In the meantime we are doing as much research as we possibly can and are growing in confidence that Mason can overcome this disease with additional nutrition that has been proven to defeat cancer. That, and of course faith in God.
    Today, Friday, the family was at the hospital by 8:00 a.m. for a meeting with the anaesthetist and they also had a follow-up meeting with Dr. Gerstle to go over the results of the CT scan. These CT scan results continue to confirm that the tumors are shrinking. The tumor in Mason's left lung is still an object of concern and appears to be attached to a major artery. There is also some indication that the cancer is also associated with a lymph node at this location and, therefore, it is even more important that it be removed.
    After their hospital visit they all went "downtown". They toured Yonge St. and all the strange shops and people in that area. They also went to the NHL Hockey Hall of Fame where Jade says that Justin was overwhelmed...."reading everything and even going back to re-read some exhibits. It was better than Christmas morning for Justin" LOL!!! They also went to the CN tower and took the elevator to the top. They were on foot for this whole downtown tour. When I finally caught up to Jade this afternoon she was "sitting on a curb in downtown Toronto"....sounds like a Gordon Lightfoot song ...... waiting for Justin to show up with the car. The boys were complaining of sore legs and were "scrapping" with one another......good old family stuff!!
    Pictures...the first is self explanatory except that Justin looks like he's been struck by something! LOL. The second is from the ferry that crosses between Lake Huron and Georgian Bay - from South Baymouth to Tobermory. Jade says that the swells got to 20 ft. - ya right - and everyone was getting green so they went inside........and of course it got worse!!!! Landlubbers!!!!

    On Monday, Mason has to be at the hospital by 6:00 a.m. Surgery is scheduled to begin at 8:00 a.m. and will hopefully be finished by 3:00 p.m. or 4:00 p.m. in the afternoon. There is a special mass for Mason scheduled for 8:00 a.m. Monday morning at the Church of Our Lady in Moose Jaw.
    Where ever you may happen to be on Monday we would so appreciate it if you would think of our precious Mason and say a special prayer for him.

A visit with Terry Fox

    Shortly after leaving Thunder Bay yesterday, the family had an opportunity to visit the Terry Fox memorial. This was a very emotional time for everyone. Terry also suffered with osteosarcoma.
    Then it was on to Eagle Ridge Provincial Park home of Canada's longest suspension bridge which the whole family climbed. At the top of two different suspension bridges and a high hill or cliff a zip line brings courageous travellers back to the starting point. This zip line is 2,680 feet long and is 185 feet high near the top. Mason was the first to go! The whole family took it.....even Jade!
    They travelled as far as Neys, Ontario yesterday and stayed at Neys Provincial Park. Today they travelled to Sault Saint Marie and will make the final push to Toronto tommorrow.
     We thank you for continuing to think about and pray for Mason.

Off to Toronto

    Jade, Justin, Kale and Mason departed for Toronto yesterday at 1:00 p.m. We've never been a family of early risers - LOL. Rocco the dog got a ride to Regina where he will be staying with Justin's parents, Sandi and Brian. The first incident, a blown back tire, happened just west of Indian Head. Thankfully it wasn't a front tire and also that the back tires are dual, so they were able to limp into Indian Head where they received wonderful service and a new tire in very little time.
    The next problem was finding a campground that wasn't already booked up. We failed to consider that it is the Sept. long weekend and the last big camping weekend of the year. Jade and Justin tried to phone ahead to 3 different campsites that they had previewed.....with no luck. Jade called her little brother, Jordan, who went on the net and finally found a nice spot just east of "WinterPeg".
    As of 10:00 a.m. this morning, the family is up and on the road again. They had just crossed the 100th meridian as I was texting Jade......"Doing well, very comfy beds! Manitoba has some serious road construction going on. Heading for Thunder Bay!"

    The following pictures were taken on Thurday evening at Jade and Justins. The Beatty and Brentnell families were over to help with loading the motorhome and they brought many departure gifts and special supplies and food. What would we ever do without the love of such good friends!

(L to R)   Holly Beattie, Jade and Alysha Brentnell

Mason with Alysa Beattie. Mason is holding his "Dolphin" staff, carved by special friend Peter Slade.

Children, video games, presents.......what more could you ask for?

Kai Beattie....."You're really going to give me 2 cookies?????"

Mason and uncle Jordan

Justin and Todd Beattie discussing the "Theory of Relativity"....Ya right!! Hockey no doubt!!!

Departure Day:

And This - Just In!!!!

Upcoming Fundraising Events

Mason's Rib and Ceasar Night

An evening of Great Food, Refreshments, Silent Auction and More

When : Saturday, September 11, 2010, 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

Where : Champs Sports Bar, 82 Manitoba St.West in Moose Jaw

Ticket Cost : $15.00 per person

Contact :  FRAN @ 692-0992 for TICKETS and/or DONATIONS 

Tickets can also be purchased at the Door

 

 

Mason’s Miracle Cabaret Fundraiser

An evening filled with Dance, Refreshments, Food, Silent Auction and More.

When : Saturday, September 25, 2010 - 7:30 p.m.

Where : Cosmos Centre, 235 3rd Avenue NE in Moose Jaw

Ticket Cost : $15.00 per person

Contacts : for TICKETS and/or DONATIONS:

Alysha @ 691-0794/631-0490, Holly @ 694-6489/631-4603,

Jana @ 694-6266/690-7778, Kelly @ 694-1567/684-4008

All proceeds will go to support the Clewis family while Mason undergoes surgery in Toronto.

The Clewis Family would like to thank everyone for the generous  support and the continuing prayers and well wishes for Mason during this difficult time

Chemotherapy Round 6 and Plans for Toronto

    Mason completed another round of chemo on Monday, August 16th and was released from the Calgary Childrens Hospital on Tuesday. Once again, Mason did wonderfully.

    The family had an opportunity to visit Ghost Lake, west of Cochrane on Wednesday, and Calloway Park on Thursday, after Mason's bloodtests. Mason's blood levels have begun to rebound once again and the family is returning to Moose Jaw today!!!! We can hardly wait!!!
    The response to our "request for help" has been overwhelming and we are so grateful to our many friends and family members.
    The family have decided to rent a motor home for Jade and Justin and they will drive to Toronto, as due to the nature of the surgery, Mason will be unable to fly home. This way, the family can spend some more time together on the road, see more of our beautiful country, build some wonderful memories and Mason can travel in comfort.
    Mason is scheduled to be at the Hospital for Sick Children on Monday, September 6th and surgery is still tentatively scheduled for Thursday, September 9th - possibly Monday the 13th.
    The photos were taken at Buffalo Pound Lake in July.

A Little Help From Our Friends

For some time now we have known that Mason will be undergoing surgery at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. We don’t know when Mason will be going to Toronto or how. We do know that Mason will not be able to fly after his surgery. We also know that this next step in “Mason’s Miracle” is going to be an expensive one. If any of our friends and family would consider helping out with this added expense we would be most grateful. I have included banking information below. Thank you so much for your help and continued thoughts and prayers.

For those wishing to make a donation, there are the following three options:

- If you are a Royal Bank member and are set up with online banking, you can choose to make a straight money transfer from your account to "Other Royal Bank Customer". You will need the following information in order to complete the transaction:

Branch # 05188
Account # 5081930
To Surname/Company Name: Clewis
To Given Name or First Initial: Jade

- If you do not have a Royal Bank account, but live in Moose Jaw, donations can be made at the Royal Bank in the Town & Country Mall as long as you have the account information listed above.

- For those wishing to make a donation by cheque, they can be sent to the following address:

Greg Lien
P.O. Box 783
Moose Jaw, SK.
S6H 4P5

Off to Calgary... Again!

Despite the belief that the next stop for the Clewis family would be Toronto, they have once again made the journey back to Calgary for another round of chemo.  Call it a hospital blunder, or perhaps a communication breakdown, either way the Clewis' will be in Cowtown for the next couple of weeks.  I think we all know how difficult it can be when you're lead to believe one thing, only to have the proverbial rug pulled out from under your feet.  All in all though, these past three years have taught us that nothing is written in stone and surprises can happen in a matter of seconds... Keep up the positive attitude Mason!  I know I'm not alone when I tell you that "I know you will."  Seems as though Papa Greg has made a serious error in judgement by giving Uncle J creative control of the blog... for now!  You'll notice I changed the background.  Much love to Cousin Amanda for creating this wonderful form of expression for the Clewis family but them dots in the background were driving me crazy - lol!  After reading Mason's blog I would continue to see dots for a long time after.  So you can consider the change very self serving... I'm good with that, I have broad shoulders.  As always people, your thoughts and prayers are more than welcome... They're cherished!  I'll do what I can to update any info that comes my way, and once Gregger gets off his butt and sends me some pictures, I'll post them as well (Can you feel the love there? haha).  Love to all! Pictures are canoeing in Bowness Park in Calgary.