The Wells family with Dave and Carole!

When you look back on your life what will you see? Will you have led a rich full life full of family, friends and community or will you see nothing but work, work, and work.  For a great many of you it will be the first.  That’s because you have taken the time and opportunity to help raise millions of dollars for Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.  
 
Dave and I have just finished the 13th Annual Miracle Marathon for the hospital and once again this wonderful community raised 1.4 million dollars.  It was a herculean effort and it paid off again this year.  I cannot possibly begin to thank the residents of Milwaukee for coming together for this worthwhile cause. It is through your gracious donations that Children’s Hospital will have the resources to help save lives. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. 
 
I would also like to thank the families that we interviewed.  They tell their stories in order to try and thank the hospital employees for everything that was done for their children.  Many times the stories are heartbreaking and tragic, but they are all inspiring and our lives are richer for hearing them. 
 
Spending three days at the hospital gives us all a brief glimpse into what goes on in those huge white buildings we see from the freeway.  It is a place where sick children go to feel better and where families find help.  It is a place where doctors, nurses and health care professionals work to find solutions.  It is a place where maintenance workers, cooks, volunteers and scores of others spend their days because they love kids.  It is a place of hope.
 
So for all of you who have opened your hearts and your wallets to help, I think in the end you will see that you have led a wonderful life.

You can still give to the Miracle Marathon - click here

Did you know that in 1998 Children’s Hospital had 222 licensed inpatient beds?  In 2010 that number  increased to 296.  Did you know that Children’s Hospital in 1998 completed two heart transplants?  That number  increased this year  to 49.  It’s nothing short of miraculous what this hospital has been able to accomplish in just 12 years.

Children’s Hospital is about people; it’s about kids and families.  The entire staff works together towards one single goal…..getting kids healthy and keeping them that way.

During this Miracle Marathon we have heard all kinds of stories, some  are sad and some  are inspiring.  Everyone has one and they are ready to share them with us.  One of our moms even said that she would travel around the world to get to Children’s. I think that speaks volumes.

Children’s Hospital is a treasure to be supported and that’s why we have held the Miracle Marathon for the past 13 years.  I am blessed with two biological children, but through my association with Children’s’ I feel I have hundreds more. These are all my kids and I want to make sure that Children’s stays right here. 

Please donate to the Miracle Marathon. 

A personal experience in the form of a poem, from a listener:

A TRIBUTE TO RACHEL
A year has passed since we said good-bye;
A year to mourn, a year to cry.
A year to reflect on the love she brought;
A year to remember the battle she fought.
The mountain she climbed was ever so steep;
The valley she walked through, ever so deep.
But she did not climb the mountain alone;
We were right there with her on her journey home.
We could not go with her when she reached the top.
Though we still had the strength, we had to stop.
For Jesus was standing there waiting for her.
He was her answer; He was her cure.
Now we find ourselves back in the valley so deep.
Every day is a struggle; every day is a feat.
But we must not forget the fight she put on,
The hurdles she crossed, the reward she won.
A year has passed; what a heartache it’s been.
But we’re one year closer ‘till we see her again.

Listen to Dave and Carole’s Miracle Marathon on 96.5 WKLH and donate generously to Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.  Online @ WKLH.com

There’s a saying that says that out of the mouths of babes comes wisdom. It is something that I learn every year. The Miracle Marathon is not only a time when we as adults should take the time to help a very important facility. It is also the time that we should take to listen to what the youth of today is telling us. Sometimes we can learn very important life lessons from the young.
I know that as adults we feel that we are the ones who should lead, but as adults we should also be able to recognize brilliance in people of any age. I have learned many things from the young people that we have interviewed during the Miracle Marathon. The children that are battling for their lives very often have important lessons for us all.
Mike Halbauer was one of those extraordinary people who left us an unbelievable gift. He used his struggle to tell all of us how to live.
I wanted to share it with you.

Mike’s Credo 2004
· Live large, take chances and seize the moment because you never know
when opportunity will pass you up.

· Smile, even if you don¹t feel like it; you¹ll be happier by doing it.

· Learn to laugh in all situations, it¹ll make you and everyone around
you happier.

· Be able to be serious, though, when you need to.

· If other people don¹t like you, that¹s their problem. Nobody likes
being around downers.

· Be glad you have the friends that you do; don¹t be sad for not having
the friends you want.

· You can¹t be in six different places at once, and if you can, the
scientists need to reverse the cloning.

· You can¹t do everything. If you could, you wouldn¹t have any friends.

· Help people who need it, but don¹t forget to help yourself.

· Attitude is contagious, so make sure you have a good one.

· Pessimists say the glass is half empty, optimists say it¹s half full.
I say there¹s none left after I drink it all!

· To see who your true friends are, screw up and see who¹s left.

· Take what you like to do, and practice. Learn how to do it well, and
make something out of it.

· School may end, but we never stop learning.

· Time changes things, for example, bread and milk.

· Love others for who they are, and love yourself for who you are.

· The farther up the ladder you go, the farther you have to fall so wear
a parachute!

· Your friends ARE your second family.

· War doesn¹t determine who¹s right it determines who¹s left.

· The most important thing anyone can learn in life is tolerance.

· Share your feelings with others.

· Let your friends know how much you care.

· Opinions make the world go around. Some just make your head spin.

Take the information that Mike left us and use it. He was a young man who was obviously much older than his years. How many of us can say that we live our life like Mike did? He taught me that every day is a gift to appreciate. That every day we should be thankful for our lives, our families and our friends.
I look forward to this years Miracle Marathon and the new lessons that I will learn. I know that through the families and children that I will meet during the Miracle Marathon I will see the world from a different point of view. The stories you will hear will inspire and motivate you.
Please join me May 26th-28th.
Take the time to not just listen, but to hear and take the time to donate. It’s so easy, just go to chw.org/miraclemarathon.

Carole Caine
WKLH Radio