Fundraiser for the Monarch Hospice

in honor of Brenda Chapman Reckewey 12/13/56 - 2/5/19

What is this Fundraiser?

 Every year, for 7 days, I run a fundraiser for Monarch hospice, to match the days my mom spent at Monarch before passing away Feb 5, 2019. 100% of all profit from my site is donated directly to the monarch hospice to provide benevolent care.

Why do you do this fundraiser? What happened?

My mom was diagnosed with a brain tumor, glioblastoma multiforme grade 4 in august 2018. grade 4 is the fastest moving, and eats away at different parts of your brain. it is 100% fatal, with most people suriving only 6-10 months. My mom had surgery to remove the tumor, and radiation and meds to slow the growth, but the thing with the brain is that you dont know theres damage until its already done. its a constant waiting game.

we were lucky to get 5 more months with my mom, mostly spent at hospitals, rehabs, and doctos offices. It was a long and painful sort of thing to watch, but also far too short.

on jan 25, 2019, only 5 months after diagnoses, staying at home was no longer a safe or viable option. after an er visit for worsening symptoms, the hospital recommended we transfer to the monarch hospice, which we did immediately.

if you’re nosy like me, i’ve saved a long video talking about the whole ordeal under the highlight called “monarch - why” on my profile on instagram.  (@spitfire.july)

So, what is the Monarch?

the monarch is a 6 bedroom home, licensed and specializing in end of life care. they are not-for-profit and non-denominational. they are in my hometown of lincoln, nebraska. 

the rooms are private, comfortable, and large enough to feel at home, with space for visitors. they provide 24 hour care, with a minimum of 2 highly trained staff for the 6 rooms. monarch has a full service kitchen, available 24/7, which guests can also use. they have childrens playrooms, lounges, and tvs everywhere to make it feel comfy and like home. the whole thing is cozy, warmly lit, and has NONE of the gross medical smell of typical hospitals.

Why should we help them?

the monarch relies on “days” worth of donated care for those in need, so my baseline goal every year is to donate at least 7 days worth of care to match her stay of jan 25 - feb 5 2019.

They take regular insurance and all that good stuff for those who can pay, but they also offer care to those who have exhausted funding or insurance, or dont have access to insurance options. 

they can only offer spots based on donations raised, and they aim to always have one bed available at all times for donated care

a full day of private care is $400. one week is $2,800. my baseline goal every year is to provide a minimum of one weeks care, the same amount of time my mom spent at monarch. 

How Spitfire July can help the Monarch:

NOTE: the monarch fundraiser is not currently active. 

100% of all profits will be donated from my sales these next 7 days (feb 5-feb 12th).  

“profit” might not be the right word - all im keeping for myself is the shipping label purchased & the literal cost of the materials.  

• I.e. - if i made a $50 earring, and used 5$ worth of gemstones and the rest of the cost is just my time and skill, then all im keeping is the $5 and the $45 leftover is 100% donated. this basically just covers my butt for taxes into a net-zero. i just want to be super transparent about it!

you can also donate directly if you prefer. I would ask you to mention my moms name in the donation comment box (brenda reckewey), as it goes on a collected list of memorial donations for my family and my moms name is displayed as memorial as well on a screen at Monarch. 

Here is the link to their donate page: simply click the black “donate” button

 if paypal is easier for you, or you’ve got a venmo balance hanging around, you can send that directly to me as well 

• paypal spitfirejuly@gmail.com
• venmo @alison-spitfirejuly (this is my personal venmo to minimize fees)

I’ve also added a “tip” option on my website at checkout.

• (the default is 0$ so no stress!) 
• you guys highly requested this last year! You can type in any amount, and itll be also 100% donated to monarch

i will keep everyone to date with screenshots from my site, paypal, and venmo for full transparency in this process. this will be visible on instagram.