June 2011 Legacy Retreat Toddler Group

Inheritance of Hope will be celebrating its 5th birthday next Monday, May 21st!  I have watched the growth of Inheritance of Hope and its subsequent outreach to 99 families since its inception in 2007.  I have watched my friends, Deric and Kristen Milligan, Inheritance of Hope founders, take up the challenge to live vibrantly after a diagnosis that would send most of us staggering.

On IOH’s birthday this Monday, a new video will be released that I don’t want you to miss.  If you go to the homepage of the IOH website on Monday, you will be able to view it.  It will succinctly and eloquently overview Inheritance of Hope, the purpose and the goal of its existence.

Running the 2012 NYC Half in support of IOH

Why am I proud of Inheritance of Hope?  Because through the Legacy Retreats and ongoing support to families experiencing a parent’s life-threatening disease, lives are being changed and fueled with hope.  Volunteers sacrificially give of their time and self to reach out to families that are in a tough place.  I have seen these families turn around and help other families experiencing the same journey.  It’s beautiful to see so many people reaching out in transparent love.

These are Kristen’s words about why she and Deric founded IOH:

I am a woman fighting a terminal diagnosis of stage 4 liver cancer.  But this does not define me.  I am also a wife and a mother of three young children.  My greatest struggle is not the cancer, but my efforts to balance my fight of the cancer with raising my family.  My greatest concern is not the illness, but my children and how this illness affects them…. My husband, Deric, and I founded Inheritance of Hope to serve the entire family of young parents like ourselves diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.

Happy Birthday Inheritance of Hope!

Watch the video and share it with your circle of family and friends!