Dear Friends,

Greetings and thank you for taking the time to visit my fund-raising page!

This year I am both honored and excited to join the 2010 Running for Cover Boston Marathon team. I have taken on this endeavor to support an organization that is close to my heart called the Melanoma Foundation of New England. This is a non-profit organization that strives to better early detection and prevention of melanoma.

As many of you may know, my beloved mother Doreen G. Fingado passed away a little over a year ago after being diagnosed with ocular melanoma. For over thirty years, she was a very healthy and caring Nurse/Diabetic Educator at Cape Cod Hospital. When my mother finally retired due to her illness, she had accrued over six months of sick time that she never used. Imagine the shock and heartache felt when we first learned of her terminal diagnosis. Within three and a half years, my 68 year old, healthy mother lost her battle to this rapidly progressing disease. A disease that quite possibly could have been prevented or detected earlier had we known more.

My motivation for running the Boston Marathon on behalf of the Melanoma Foundation of New England stems from three important reasons. First, is the memory of my mother and her courageous battle against this insidious disease. Second, is the hope that I can help prevent another family from going through an additional senseless loss and last is from my love of running. The Melanoma Foundation of New England is on the forefront of the fight against Melanoma each day. Every kind donation will go directly to the foundation to support the early detection and prevention programs as well as provide assistance to families dealing with a melanoma diagnosis.

In closing, I would like to thank you again from my family and the organization for your sponsorship. I would also greatly appreciate any assistance in passing my fund-raising page along to friends, so they too can join in the effort to raise money for this worthy cause. Please remember that every contribution is an important part of the solution. Thanks again for your time and I will see you at the finish line!

                                                                             Sincerely,

                                                                             Sarah Simonelli