I would like to share perhaps a familiar verse, but one that I love that I want to encourage us all with!

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. -- Matthew 11:28-30

Basically, a yoke is a piece of wood that is used to hold two animals together in order to plow fields for a new season of crop planting. Jesus’ audience would have recognized and completely understood exactly what a yoke is and what a yoke does. They would know that a yoke is not a light and easy thing to bear. It bears weight...a lot of weight! They also would know that stronger oxen were matched with weaker or younger oxen in order to help it become stronger without overwhelming it. The stronger ox bears most of the weight, yet the two oxen are in step together sharing the load, doing the work together.

Tweet

Lex Berthelsen was shocked in December 2017 upon being diagnosed with grade 3a stage IV follicular lymphoma.  The father of three, along with his wife Brooke, immediately sought out cancer survivors and cancer thrivers, relationships that led them to Inheritance of Hope. 

“We weren’t sure,” Brooke remembered, “but we printed out the application for an IoH Legacy Retreat® anyway, and did it.  I’m so grateful we did.”

Tweet

What do families do? They laugh together. They cry together. They celebrate together. They make memories together. And, they have family reunions!

We look forward to opening registration once our vendors resume normal operations. In the meantime, mark your calendars: Sept. 5-7, 2020 (note slight date change from our previous announcement) at Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld.

We invite you to make more family memories, re-connect with other families/volunteers, and form new relationships with our larger IoH family.

Tweet

Is it apparent to you what the common theme of most advertisements is? How about the messages we receive on social media? The goal of most advertising is to convince you that “you need this” or “your life could be better if…” and in social media, we often receive the message that we’re not doing enough in life, because it seems like everyone else is doing so much better and more.

How can we be content, when we always feel like we’re lacking in something? This is the question I’ve been wrestling with lately, and I’m grateful that God has been revealing the secret of contentment to me!

Tweet

“It was like a giant hug, just wrapped up in a fancy bow,” described Laura Scampoli of the recent Inheritance of Hope C.A.R.E. Retreat that she attended with her children.  Originally, Laura, her husband Rich, and their four daughters were scheduled to attend an Inheritance of Hope Legacy Retreat® in April 2019. Rich passed away from pancreatic cancer a little over a month before the planned trip to Orlando.

Tweet

In these days of uncertainty and limited social interaction, you might find yourself frustrated by the way your life has changed over the past few weeks (or even days).  Those of us with ALS or other debilitating diseases get it. But if we can adapt, you can too! 

The Douglas family made lifelong memories on their Inheritance of Hope Legacy Retreat® in May 2017

Tweet

While the rest of the world learns to social distance, it’s business as usual for many of our Inheritance of Hope families.  There’s nothing quite like a terminal diagnosis or deadly virus to quickly scrap plans and teach necessary health saving measures.  For our IoH families, uncertainty is the only certainty, and they understand the disappointment, anxiety, and adaptations that have become routine over these last few weeks.  Because we are all in this together, these unwilling experts offer their tips for coping with fear, near-constant change, and the need to quarantine. 

Tweet

On March 18th, Inheritance of Hope (IoH) recognizes the birthday of our Co-Founder Kristen Grady Milligan.  Kristen may have been the best legacy-builder ever--while living with cancer, she prepared cedar chests full of notes, gifts, and videos for each of her three children.  Although young when their mom passed away, Kristen’s son and two daughters continue to feel her presence through the tangible ways she left a part of herself with them.  

Kristen Grady Milligan, March 18, 1973 - October 26, 2012

Tweet

Out of our record-breaking 16 new volunteers, five are former family members served--and you know what that meant--lots of hugs and smiles as we welcomed them back!  Get to know a few of them here!

Our newest Inheritance of Hope volunteers along with our “first-timers” from Kendra Scott and Dillard’s

Tweet

I love this Legacy Retreat® so much! There are several reasons why it is so special.

1) All of the families on this retreat have the same diagnosis. They have metastatic breast cancer. Powerful community is always formed among the families at Legacy Retreats®, and this particular retreat seems to bring about instant connection as these families don't even have to explain about different illnesses to one another. In fact, many of them have been in private Facebook groups and chat rooms together and now they are finally meeting face to face.

Orlando Legacy Retreat® presented by Kendra Scott, Feb. 2020