Operation: Force of Hope

Never tell me the odds.

It's been the "Troop for the Cure" mantra since I started this blog, a little less than a year ago. It embodies a simple philosophical perspective that I have held throughout my life. People who know me understand that I am a realist, that I am logical at first nature and that I can assess a situation pretty quickly to determine the probable outcome. But people who are close to me understand that, despite and aside from that trait, I am also a romantic- that I believe in the power of hope and the human spirit, and that if I have faith in anything it is in the ability of people to overcome their circumstances through the power of sheer will, effort, and a little kindness.

Hope is the foundation of will. It nurtures our spirits. It dares us to dream and it spurs us on to make impossible things happen. What I fight for in this world is not victory over death, it is not the salvation of every man woman and child affected by illness or hardship- it's the war to give those people a fighting chance. The means to overcome relentless adversaries, insurmountable obstacles, and impossible odds. This is a war on suffering. We are the soldiers, and the weapon is hope.

Never tell me the odds.

A situation was brought to my attention through some mutual friends of a young woman who has fought impossible odds for the last three years. On the page her sister (a hero)  set up for her I learned a lot about her: Nadine Sfeir was diagnosed with an astrocytoma brain tumor in 2010, and has since undergone numerous forms of chemotherapy and two brain surgeries to no avail. Nadine, who had hoped to attend school to become an international human rights attorney, instead faces one final option for treatment to her life-threatening illness: an exploratory treatment called Novacure and a vaccine treatment only offered abroad. Due to the experimental nature of these procedures Nadine's insurance company has denied her appeal to cover the treatments and the family is left with a staggering $150,000 in medical expenses standing between them and their daughter's last chance.

Many factors have stood in Nadine's path to recovery, but it seems cruel that in the end her limiting factor should be financial. I've never met Nadine Sfeir. I've never heard her voice, or had a correspondence with her. But I believe she deserves the chance to fight for her life.

Now is a time for action.

Operation: Force of Hope is an ambitious effort. With some guidance and assistance from some legendary heroes from the 501st legion I have formulated a multi-front campaign to help Nadine in her battle. The key element to this battle is you, and I need your help.

In the 501st we celebrate and commemorate events with patches. These patches are worn as a badge of honor showing where troopers are from, their squad affiliations, events and charities they have supported, and more.

I have designed a Troop for the Cure patch, to be made available to anyone who would like to make a donation to Nadine's Cause (not just legion members). The Troop for the Cure design means many things to me. The Helmet and Cog are representative of my ties to The 501st legion, and the red ribbon is the symbol for blood born diseases (including multiple myeloma, my fathers cancer). These patches will be sold for $26, and all proceeds from the patch sales will go directly to Nadine to pay for the medical expenses of her treatments. The patches will be advanced ordered and then put into production once enough funds have been raised to cover the cost (Minus whatever I can scrape together to front costs myself).

From there I need your help- not only in the form of donation, but in the form of promotion. The "ambitious" part of this mission of course is the incredible amount of money that is required for the treatment-- if we sold 2,000 patches we would only raise $50,000 for Nadine's cause (1/3 of what she needs). What is encouraging is that Nadine's fund has already reached over $17,000 dollars in the short time her page has been up, and is steadily growing day by day. 

In this magical age of the internet I am confident that we can make Nadine's fight viral and we can sell 2,000 or more of these patches. By doing so, it is my hope that we can give Nadine the boost she needs to make her last stand against cancer. So share. Spread the word and the link and Nadine's story- with your family, friends, strangers- and make a difference.

This story is important to me for many reasons. Because I have a family member who is fighting cancer. Because I know what it's like to feel helpless. Because I have been Nadine's sister. Because every person deserves to fight. I have been witness to the miracle of the human spirit, to the giving nature of mankind, and the power of will. I have seen the power of the 501st Legion, I have seen the strength in my friends and family, and I have seen the impossible achieved.

In the war against suffering, we are the soldiers. The weapon is hope.

No surrender.

No retreat.

Never tell me the odds.

-TK-66613

501st Legion

Florida Garrison

Makaze Squad

First Imperial Stormtrooper Detachment

 Order Patches from Troop For The Cure here:

http://www.freewebstore.org/Troop-For-The-Cure/-Patch3a_Donation_To_Benefit_Nadine_Sfeir/p1645292_10251072.aspx

501st members!! can see the legion order thread here:
http://www.501st.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=77726

Read Nadine's Story here:

http://www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/be-our-miracle-/72491

Please Share her page!

**UPDATE**
Patches are currently IN STOCK and will ship weekly as orders arrive. At this time patches have raised over $1,000 to help Nadine. Please help us continue to spread the word!

***UPDATE***

By popular demand we are doing a run of Troop for the Cure t-shirts and bumper stickers that were available at Star Wars Weekends. You can visit the thread here to view and purchase them:

 http://www.501st.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=961498#961498

If you are not a Legion Member, you can order them at my webstore, 

http://www.freewebstore.org/troop-for-the-cure

At this time Shirts are PRE-ORDER only, and will be printed once enough have been ordered to print the run (between 50 and 100). Please be patient as these take time to print!

We also posted our first donation to Nadine's fundraiser this week, in the amount of $1,000! 

***FINAL UPDATE***
It is my sad duty to report that Nadine Sfeir  passed away this past thanksgiving. To read more about Nadine please see my updated post http://troopforthecure.blogspot.com/2013/12/operation-force-of-hope-mission-complete.html.  The patches are still available to purchase and the funds that have not already been attributed to Nadine's cause are being deferred to a cause of a similar nature I hope to announce soon. Thanks to anyone who has donated or supported this mission.