Kathy Midkiff ran the Chicago marathon—her first—this past October in support of Inheritance of Hope (IoH). Her fundraising goal was to raise enough money to send an entire family on a Legacy Retreat®. Kathy’s daughter-in-law, Kerri Midkiff, was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in 2009, and since then Kathy has seen firsthand the difficulties that IoH families face.
The Black family attended an Inheritance of Hope Legacy Retreat® in August 2014. Haleigh Black, now age 18, and her father, Reggie, returned as volunteers to serve at the most recent retreat in May this year. They were part of the largest group of served family members returning to volunteer, as 17 individuals from Legacy Retreat® families served.
I’ve been coming to Inheritance of Hope Legacy Retreats for many years now. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed as families walk into the hotel, and I see all the desires that come in the door with them.
In the short-term, families want to figure out what to do with their luggage and get settled into their rooms (thankfully, we have a mob of volunteers to help them with that!). The kids may want a delicious DoubleTree cookie, or they may want their brother to stop poking them. They may desire to skip meeting all these new people and run straight to Disney World.
Inheritance of Hope hosted 28 families in our largest-ever Orlando Legacy Retreat®. From May 27-30, 73 children and their parents enjoyed amazing customer service at the DoubleTree Suites. They had a fun-filled agenda, with one day each spent at Disney World, Universal Studios, and SeaWorld. They shared experiences with other families like theirs and learned about resources and tools to support their journey through terminal illness.
Check out these links to see pictures and videos!
Inheritance of Hope welcomes our newest staff member, Audra Milligan. Audra will serve as IoH’s first Strategic Initiatives Director. The core cross-functional areas she will support are operations, strategic projects, administration, and marketing.
Heather originally shared this in preparation for the May 6 Hunter Subaru Legacy Run.
When life is challenging, even though I know I am doing what God has called me to do, I often forget that He wants me to succeed and delights in blessing me! The staff and volunteers of Inheritance of Hope earnestly seek God's face and His will and strive to know and follow His word.
Zachary Austin, 13, of Brevard, NC, first learned about Inheritance of Hope (IoH) when two of his friends were given the opportunity to attend a Legacy Retreat®. Erik and Jason Crawford went with their parents, John and Heather, on the Orlando Legacy Retreat® in August of 2014. Zach knew the Crawford family well since John was also his Boy Scouts leader.
Andrea Kent was not a runner until 2000, when her husband of 20 years died unexpectedly. She began to run in order to cope with her grief, and explains, “I didn’t know what to do, so I just started running.” Within a year, she ran her first marathon. Now, at age 59, she has completed ten marathons, numerous half-marathons, and a number of triathlons, racking up awards and accolades along the way.
Andrea’s next race is the Big Sur International Marathon in California on Sunday, April 30th.
I am so thankful that I am a work in progress. I am thankful that God has not left me where I was yesterday, or last month, or last year. I am thankful that He continues to work in my heart to mold me into a better person.
Carol Lacert and Theresa Whyard-McKinley, whose families have both been impacted by terminal illness, love helping other families in similar situations enjoy Inheritance of Hope Legacy Retreats®. They enthusiastically fundraise so that more families from Northern Colorado can have the Legacy Retreat® experience. They recently joined forces with Resurrection Christian School in Loveland, Colorado, with great success.
