Giving Flights. Extending Life

Giving Flights. Extending Life

Our Mission:

The Scott S. Craun Foundation is a non-profit charity created by Scott Craun (1975-2011), a registered nurse in Honolulu, Hawaii. Before Scott passed away from Multiple Myeloma, he took the initial steps to establish a fund that could perpetually aid island-bound cancer patients. Multiple Myeloma is a rare blood cell cancer. Scott's know-how as a health care provider AND a cancer patient lent his mission a laser focus on a specific population. Relatively, there are not many myeloma patients in Hawaii (less than 400). The nearest support groups are in California. This charity will make an important difference in the quality of some of these lives. Like Scott, these patients were told, "You have an 'incurable cancer.' Eventually, you will have to take a break from your work. And the most specialized treatment centers are 2500 miles away."


Scott's wish is to provide Hawaii's myeloma patients (or one family member/care-giver) with round-trip airfare to the Continental US for any oncologist-recommended treatment not available in Hawaii. Stem cell transplant, for example, can be a key to prolonging life--sometimes by years--as it was for Scott. Twice Scott experienced the hardships of this relocation for transplant. Scott had many of us to help him through this burden and he was eternally grateful; many other patients are not nearly as networked. Scott became acutely aware of their immediate need. He left behind documents outlining a non-profit based on incremental goals and longevity as priorities over huge sums of money. Ultimate success means for us to be still providing at least one annual flight on the day Hawaii is capable of all specialized myeloma patient technology. Or, even better: on the day MM is no longer deemed "incurable."


To turn Scott's efforts into reality, we will need your help. One annual donation per person--of any amount--is welcomed, along with your suggestions, fundraising ideas, and maybe a few volunteer hours at our events. All who donate will receive a personal message from our foundation updating you on our balance, expenses, number of donors, upcoming fundraisers, and goals. The specific language in our tax exempt 501(c)3 will be transparent to all. We report to every single donor as if they were an investor, beacause they are. The way we give to patients will be on a very personal basis, and we'll share those stories here. Thank you, stay tuned, and thanks to Scott for pointing us in the right direction! We're going to take what he started . . . and keep it going for as long as there is a demand.

Scott S. Craun Foundation. Domestic Nonprofit Corporation, State of Hawaii File No. 235294 D2.

Make out checks to: / send mail to:
Scott S. Craun Foundation
2700 S. King Street
Unit 11564
Honolulu, HI 96828
ph. (808) 772-0408

CraunFoundation@gmail.com

Saturday, January 7, 2012

One week until Scott's York, PA memorial service: Pictures, Ice Cream, and the beginnings of a Foundation

Several of Scott's friends in York, PA have created a web page for uploading pictures of Scott.  Any pictures. All pictures. Especially ones that include his friends and family and will make us laugh.  (These won't be hard to find.) They have requested as many pictures as possible, and some of these will be presented at his memorial service.

This is a great way to make sure his Mom Vicki gets The Album of all photo albums.

So copy and paste some of your favorites from Facebook archives, or dig through your laptop. Maybe even scan some old paper photos which will definitely be some of the best ones. Or use this trick: take a digital camera pic of an old paper pic (smart phones work fine for this).  These actually turn out pretty good and then are saved indefinitely--there is one of these posted now . . . a 10 year old? Scott (with mullet haircut). Go check it out here:

http://rememberingscottcraun.shutterfly.com/

We need a bunch more. Thanks to Ken Sweigart for leading this great idea.





Scott's memorial service is one week away.  On Saturday January 14, 2012, starting at 11:00am with a luncheon afterward.  Scott's friends and family encourage all who can to attend:

Christ Lutheran Church
29 S. George St.
York, PA 17401

Meanwhile, Scott's Hawaii friends have been putting together the initial start-up costs for a charitable non-profit tentatively called THE SCOTT S. CRAUN FOUNDATION. We have established a Scott Craun Nursing Student Scholarship through the University of Hawaii Foundation which will provide $1000/year to a Hawaii nursing student demonstrating work ethic and financial need.

We will be fundrasing later in 2012 (and once annually thereafter). With the fund we will also perpetuate Scott's dream of helping Hawaii's multiple myeloma patients (even if only one per year) with medical travel costs to the Continental USA. This will be primarily in the form of one round-trip flight ticket. More details to come. We hope to be underway by March.


Thanks to a great idea and an Anonymous donor, there will be 360 single servings of Ben & Jerry's ice cream at Scott's memorial. This is exactly the type of effort that gives us great hopes for the beginnings of this foundation that will honor Scott's wishes.


I'll sign off for now with a few of Scott's words:

"Oh ice cream… this you can indulge in on occasion just for me. Tell yourself and your family I have to have a little ice cream tonight. It is for Scott."



http://rememberingscottcraun.shutterfly.com/
Posted by at 2 comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)