Category: A word from

WINTER’S DEMISE, SPRING’S HOPE!

Well, in spite of everything stand-in groundhog Puxatawney Pete had to say about it, the Eastern U.S. has just come out of a mild winter, and I hope improved conditions for homebuilding–and logging–continue to line up, here and across the nation, supporting a sustained recovery in all parts of our economy.

Here in Charlottesville, Virginia, we’ve broken ground, and the new University of Children’s Hospital, known as the Battle Building, has begun to rise–in part, due to help from our local Log A Load For Kids contributions over the past years.   Virginia Log A Load For Kids recently pledged to sponsor and build a chemotherapy infusion bay–a cheerful space filled with light and color–where kids can feel comfortable and safe while receiving this necessary, and not-so-kind, treatment to save their lives.

Kids like Hannah.

Children with cancer face a long and difficult recovery.  For Hannah, her cancer treatment lasted two and a half years–typical for children with leukemia.   During that time, Hannah, who had just turned nine, underwent frequent chemotherapy infusions and spinal sedations, sometimes several times a week.   It was hard to keep her spirits up.  Now, three years later, she is “learning gymnastics and enjoying life, family and friends to the fullest,” her Mom writes.

Hannah had a positive outlook, positive thinking, and a lot of support from her family and friends to get her through the most difficult time in her young life.   Having these attitudes helped Hannah recover her health and wellbeing…Not only will she live longer and healtheir, but she’ll have better chances for ultimate success in her life.   Hannah’s optimism and affirmations are an example to all of us.

Please continue to do what we all do best in encouraging others to support their Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals through the ongoing suport of our Log A Load For Kids efforts.   The innovation of this fantastic group of volunteers and “partners in inspiration” is what gives these children, like Hannah, the opportunity for a healthy, happy and long life.

May your spring flowers sprout, may your trees bloom full, and may you have success in fundraising to help make miracles for our precious resource–our children!

My name is Rich Palermo, and I am honored and humbled to be elected the first Log A Load For Kids Foundation Chairman of the Board.   I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincerest gratitude to our past Chairwoman, Lisa Medici of Medici Logging, from Westwood, California, for her success in leading the Log A Load For Kids Advisory Group to its newly gained Foundation status.

Currently I am the Area Chairman of the Log A Load For Kids program working alongside the Unviersitiy of Virginia Children’s Hospital in Charlottesville, Virginia.   I have been a Procurement Forester with Greif Packaging LLC for the past 28 years.   The support and encouragement from Greif, along with the loggers, foresters, sawmills, paper mills, equipment dealers, and all the other industry personnel that I’ve been associated with in my years with Log A Load are the reason why I continue to be so positive about what we all do for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

The Log A Load For Kids Foundation will be among those attending the Children’s Miracle Network Celebration, to meet selected ambassadors from each of the United States and across Canada.   The Celebration recognizes these remarkable children, who have triumphed despite severe medical challenges, for their courage and tenacity.   Attending the CMN Hospitals Celebration has strengthened my commitment to making the Foundation, a continued success.   I encourage you, at least once, to attend this Celebration of life, healing, hope, and success….the miracles you all work so hard to help provide.

I’d like to share a personal highlight of my own, from a CMN Telethon at the Unviersity of Virginia Children’s Hospital.   At that event, ten of the kids from the patient rooms came down to the lobby and were photographed on the autographed Bruce Springsteen motorcycle.   Each one of these pictures was sent to Bruce Springsteen, along with a thank you note.

One of those ten children, was a boy, just eleven years old, who was an avid fan of Bruce’s.   At that time, he was waiting for a heart transplant.  As it happened, he lost his battle, and his life a few weeks later.   When his Mom called me with the sad news — a phone call I’ll never forget — she also let me know that it was such a thrill for her child to know that his picture had been sent to Bruce.  When I informed Bruce’s manager of this sad event, he immediately sent the family tickets and backstage passes to a local Bruce Springsteen show, with the hope of Bruce’s performing their child’s favorite tune:  “Born In the USA.”

This child, along with millions of others, did not have time on his side.   I want to encourage you to continue to do what you do so well to help grow our efforts, so that our most precious resource, our children, have the opportunity to be treated and cured and ultimately survive.

Rich Palermo
Chair
Log A Load For Kids Foundation

Welcome Winter!

For a lot of us it has been a very short season in the timber industry, with the late start to the season and early onset of winter at least in California.   We had snow in June this year!   The economy, too, has made fundraising difficult, and it looks like it will be some time before we Americans will be back on our feet.   When people are apprehensive about their future, they hold on to things very tightly-and that includes their hard-earned money.

John Forno and Laura MacGregor had a beautiful granddaughter, Alicia Rose Fiore, who left this world on January 14, 2011.  She was almost 14.   She was born with spina bifida and received care from the Spina Bifida Association of Arizona in Phoenix.   John and Laura have always had a generous heart for Log A Load For Kids® and would donate every year to auctions, raffles, or anything that raised funds for “The Kids.”   In July 2011, they had trees at their residence that they wanted removed.  John and Laura decided to donate the money from the logs to the hospital where their granddaughter received her medical care.   When John and Laura’s neighbors found out about that project, they donated trees off their property, too, to make sure there would be a full load.

We also want to thank Ray and Bernadine Adams and Dan and Debbie Harr, along with their children, Allison and Alex.   When we picked up the logs from the Harr family, Allison handed me a flower and said “thank you for helping sick kids.”   This is why I donate my time!   The load raised $1,340.50, and my brother Jack Medici, my boyfriend Joe Mason, and I bucked, bumped the knots, and then picked up the logs with our self-loader.   We then asked an aspiring photographer, a 2011 graduate from our community, Jim Vega, to take pictures of the event.   He did a wonderful job.   Jim, too, has had a rough year, as he lost his father, Jamie Vega, to a car accident just over a year ago.

With all of the calamities in life that we just can’t understand, we still have to give way to hope-hope keeps us going, along with our wonderful memories of our lost loved ones.

My thoughts and prayers are with those wonderful people that donated their time and heart for Alicia Rose Fiore and her family.   This will be my last column and I am eternally grateful and honored to have had this opportunity.   I am so proud to say that I have been California Chair for almost seven years and I have loved every minute of it!   The wonderful part about going to the National Log A Load For Kids® Conference is that everyone is motivated in high gear to make a difference for the children of their state.

It is now time to hand the gavel to man that has an abundance of great ideas, Rich Palermo from Amherst, Virginia.   Rich is a very enthusiastic man with lots of energy and a big heart!   Together with others in his state, he purchased a Harley Davison motorcycle and talked Bruce Springsteen and the G Street Band to autograph the bike!  It raised tens of thousands of dollars!   It is an honor to know this man, as he will be an inspiration to Log A Load For Kids®!

Thank you for letting me be a member of this wonderful charity,

Lisa Medici, National & California Chair
Log A Load For Kids

I love to write about inspirational stories of sick or injured “miracle children,” their recoveries, and their successes, but I really thought that this column should be dedicated to George Ragsdale, lovingly known as the “Godfather” of the Log A Load For Kids program.

George B. Ragsdale of Dinwiddie County, Virginia passed away September 6, 2010 at the age of 84.   Mr. Ragsdale was born in 1926 at Baltimore Corner in Dinwiddie County, Virginia.   Our condolences go out to his wife of 63 years, Mary Emma Ragsdale, his son George Allen Ragsdale (and George, Jr.’s wife Tess Franklin), his two sisters Virginia Ringer and Mary Scott Harvey, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Mr. Ragsdale first learned about Log A Load For Kids in 1994 while serving on Forest Resources Association’s Board of Directors.   George became the first Chairman of the FRA National Log A Load For Kids Advisory Group.  Under his leadership the program expanded greatly.

Rick Meyer, Forest Resources Association Region Manager said, “George was probably the single most important person to spread the program to a national level.   He gave money to help new states get started and made countless calls to his many contacts and supporters.   George liked to keep focus on the kids and give loggers the up-front credit for the program.”

George’s fervor for Log A Load For Kids never diminished.  He presistently pushed raffle tickets, T-shirts, and jackets to help generate funds.  George was quick to brush off his personal giving in the program and wouldn’t get specific about his donations, but it amounted to hunders of thousands of dollars.   He always said, “The real heroes are the doctors, nurses, and other professional who work with these kids every day.   A lot of tears have been shed for all the right reasons.”

Mr. Ragsdale was one of those quality people who will be deeply missed.   On behalf of all the Log A Load For Kids volunteers and kids, Thank You, George, for you have made the world a better place with your warmth, wit, spirt, and generosity.   May you rest in peace

My name is Lisa Medici, and I have been honored to be elected as the new National Chair of the Log A Load For Kids Advisory Group, starting this month—November 2009. I would like to extend my gratitude to past Chair Robert Williams, of Tennessee, for his dedication to this important campaign.

I am currently Chair of California’s Log A Load program. It has meant a lot to me, with my own three children, as well as one precious grandson, who will soon be turning 3.

I was born and raised in Westwood, California, a small community in the mountains 100 miles from Reno, Nevada. I’m a third-generation logger—my family has been in this business for over 47 years. My grandfather and father both started out as gyppo truck drivers and then began salvage logging, running a front-end loader, skidder, dozer, and employing a choker setter and knot bumper—about five employees. Today, at the peak of the season, we employ 40 to 50 and perform mechanical and conventional logging, chipping, hauling, low bedding, and road work. My brother Jack and I grew up in the business, and today we run it in partnership.

I know this year is bringing hardships for everyone—for our business, as well. Even the National Log A Load Conference will be held by conference call this year. It’s hard to think about giving when we have so little to give ourselves. I hope everyone can pull through this tough economic stage and keep in mind that, through Log A Load For Kids®, we are helping to give children the care and comfort that they deserve.

We are all working toward the same goal: to see the forest industry thrive and to keep kids healthy. Good luck and God bless everyone, in all that you do.

Thank you!
Lisa Medici
Chair, Log A Load For Kids California
Incoming Chair, National Log A Load For Kids Advisory Group