Since Logan’s diagnosis people have shown their true colors, both good and bad. Thankfully, we have seen way more good…from friends, strangers, and especially family. And our recent trip (26 hours away to be exact!) to New York City showed us the good even more.
About a year ago my cousin, Brian, called me out of the blue. I hadn’t talked to him in a while…we are both busy with life and kids, but he is one of those people where you easily pick up where you left off. I was excited to see his name pop up on my phone, and when I hung up with him I was speechless. You see, Brian has always been the type to get stuff done. He is a hustler, the life of the party, and has the biggest heart. He had an idea. An idea to help out Logan.
Brian lives in NYC where he is the CEO of VF Global Insurance Brokerage LLC. One of his areas of expertise is insuring art. Brian’s good friend, Tommy Head, started an incredible foundation, the Childhood Cancer Society. Tommy started this at the age of 16 after his own bout with childhood cancer. 16!!! Tommy asked Brian if he would become involved in his annual art auction, and Brian said that he would do so if Logan could be included. Just the fact that Brian had thought of us, even after going so long without catching up with each other meant the world to me. Well, Tommy also blew me away, offering to split the proceeds of his annual charity auction with our Pitt Hopkins Research Foundation. What!? If that doesn’t give you all the feels, I don’t know what will. A total stranger offering HALF of his proceeds to another stranger…that is an incredible man. Check out his foundation…all proceeds go to the families of children battling cancer. It’s fantastic.
So, I got another call from Brian months later, and he said they were setting up the auction for September. I can’t even imagine all of the long hours and extremely hard work that went into putting this together. Our very small job was to spread the word and find pieces to be donated. I immediately thought of some of the older girls with Pitt Hopkins, who are incredible artists! A couple of pieces were donated by them, one from our dear family friend Cathy of Critters and Colors, and an up and coming artist, who Brian named “Captain Jack”.
I can’t tell you how excited I was for this! I’m from New York, and hadn’t been back in about 5 years! I was an art history major, which made it even more exciting for me. I’ve been aching for the creative energy that I once had, and being there gave it right back. Plus, David and I have not been away without the kids in FOREVER…I hadn’t been away from them in almost 4 years.
When we landed in NY it was raining. This is very fitting, since David and I have the rainy getaway luck (it rained 90% of the time on our honeymoon…and they were shooting the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition at our resort. Super, huh!). It was also UN week, which made traffic a nightmare. And, our hotel and event site were smack in the middle of it all.
We spent the afternoon just walking around. This was one of my favorite things to do while living up there. I used to talk to David on the phone while walking 40+ blocks home from work, something I’d look forward to every day!
After battling rain, traffic and having to ditch the cab to walk 6 blocks we finally made it to the Winston Group. The elevator doors opened to a sea of art, and a huge sculpture of Cap’n Crunch, ha! The room quickly filled up with familiar faces, and strangers that became friends by the end of the night. The pieces were stunning, unique and made your head tilt to the side in wonder. The conversations were fun and endearing, and the artists and art lovers made me feel that energy I craved. It was just what I needed.
The night flew by, art was purchased, and memories were made. I’m not sure yet of the grand total that was raised, but having the opportunity to be included in a heartfelt event, and talking to strangers about sweet Logan was priceless. Thank you Brian for being an awesome soul, and thank you Tommy for having a huge heart. And New York, I love you. Until next time!
To donate to Childhood Cancer Society, click here.
To donate to Pitt Hopkins, click here.