Friday's Fact Week 2

As promised, I'm back with Friday's Fact! I had a few facts that I thought of posting this week. But I decided on a more "light hearted" fact. The reason I chose this one is simply that I was asked about it all week. The fact for this week is..... Epilepsy Awareness color is LAVENDER!! Seize a Cure for Zac has had Epilepey Awareness/Seize a Cure for Zac bracelets for sale for a week now and I have had many people ask me why they were purple. Most people are familiar with other diseases like cancer and recognize Relay for Life merchandise. I would love to spread Epilepsy Awareness to the point that people recognize that light purple/lavender as Epilepsy Awareness.
I also wanted to take this opportunity to let everyone know just what the profits from these bracelets would be used for. As stated in earlier posts, Zac has been going regularly to The Medical College of Georgia's Epilepsy Monitoring Unit in Augusta for over a year to be a part of their surgery study. He has had 3 EEGs and will be going back late this summer for his Intracranial EEG. When these patients are being monitored they can only move a very short distance away from their room. As you can imagine, a child can get very stir crazy in a short amount of time. Seize a Cure for Zac will be using the profits from bracelet sales to purchase new games, books, and video game systems for these patients. These materials are desperatly needed. Help us to bring some joy to these patients and make their stay a little easier. I want to thank everyone that has purchased bracelets, offered to help in any way they can, and helped me to spread the word for our June 18th benefit for Zac in Thomaston. The response has been overwhelming.
Please find us on Facebook if you haven't done so, "like" our page and follow this blog. I have attached a photo of our Seize a Cure for Zac bracelets. They are $2 each for pick up and $3 each if mailing in an order to 40 Edgewood Ave. Thomaston, GA 30286. If you are in Jackson, get with me, Courtney Moore to purchase bracelets. If you're in Thomaston, Alicia, Karen, Angie and Keegan will be glad to assist you. All contact information for everyone helping with Seize a Cure for Zac will be at the bottom of this post. Be on the look out for our lavender Seize a Cure for Zac bracelets!! Until next time... stay tuned, spread the word, and count your blessings everyday!!

-Zac's Aunt Court

Courtney @ 770-366-9051
Keegan @ 706-741-0137
Angie @ 706-741-0477
Karen @ 770-550-7093
Alicia @ 404-831-8415

Bracelets

I wanted to let everyone know that Seize a Cure for Zac bracelets are here. They are lavender for Epilepsy Awareness. All bracelet proceeds will be going towards new games, books, and a new video game system for the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit at the Medical College of Georgia. Zac has spent a lot of time there over the last year and will be having his Intracranial EEG Monitoring there this summer. Bracelets are $2 for pick up or $3 if you would like them to be mailed. Please make checks payable to Benefit for Zac Shumate. All information is also included on the picture at the top of this post. You can find us on Facebook to place an order or feel free to contact anyone listed at the bottom of this post. Thank you all for your support! Until next time... spread the word, stay tuned, and count your blessings everyday!

-Zac's Aunt Court

Keegan @ 706-741-0137
Angie @706-741-0477
Karen @ 770-550-7093
Alicia @ 404-831-8415
Courtney @ 770-366-9051

Friday's Fact

As promised, I have FRIDAY'S FACT for you. This is a Georgia statistic and it is mindblowing. 1 in every 100 Georgians has epilepsy. Just think about it for a minute. That's 2-10 people at your church service this Sunday, 300 people at the Varsity eating chilidogs on any given day, 5000 people in Savannah for the St. Patric's Day celebrations, 2 people on a marta train at any given time, 928 people in Sanford Stadium in Athens on a football Saturday, and most important.... someone you know. Please go to www.epilepsyga.org for more info. I hope this will start the conversation. "Not Another Moment Lost to Seizures".
I'll leave contact info for Seize a Cure for Zac at the bottom of the post along with a little humor. In our family we believe that laughter is the best medicine.

As always, spread the word, stay tuned, and Count Your Blessings Everyday.

-Zac's Aunt Court




Car Show: Keegan @ 706-741-0137
5k: Angie @ 706-741-0477
Poker Run: Karen @ 770-550-7093
For General Information Call Alicia @ 404-831-8415

Update on Benefit

I wanted to take a moment to update everyone on Seize a Cure for Zac. First, I want to say a huge "Thank You" to a few people. Alicia, Karen, Keegan, and Angie have all been working really hard on organizing the event in Thomaston. Zac and his family are very blessed to have such great friends.
The event date is June 18, 2011 @ 1063 Hwy 19 North Thomaston, GA 30286. If it should rain then it will be the following weekend. There will be a Poker Run, 5k, Car Show, auction, live music, food, vendors, and a kid zone with many activites to keep the children entertained. Be on the look out for flyers,newspaper ads,and much more! I will also be adding "Friday's Fact" to our Facebook Page "Sieze a Cure for Zac". I hope to spread Epilepsy awareness by posting a fact or statistic on our Facebook page every Friday! Make sure to "like" the page so that you can keep up!
The response and support has been overwhelming. The number of people that are working hard everyday to bring this together is mind blowing to me. Thank you all for the kind words, advice,time, hard work, thoughts and prayers. They are all appreciated.
I will leave you with contact information for each event at the bottom of the page. Donations can also be made through the paypal "donate" button on this page or at any United Bank branch in the Benefit for Zac Shumate Fund. Spread the word, stay tuned, and until next time... Count Your Blessings Everyday!

-Zac's Aunt Court

Car Show: Keegan @ 706-741-0137
5k: Angie @ 706-741-0477
Poker Run: Karen @ 770-550-7093
For all other attractions and general information call Alicia @ 404-831-8415

Zac's Journey

My name is Courtney Moore. I'm Zac's aunt. The purpose of this blog is to spread the word about my 9 year old nephew Zac's illness and Sieze a Cure for Zac which is a benefit that is scheduled for June 18th,2011 in his hometown of Thomaston, GA.
3 1/2 years ago while on the phone with my sister, one of the most horrible things happened. She was driving home, and said, "I have to go. Zac's having a seizure". From those words I waited for the longest 20 minutes of my life. I sat with my husband Amos, and at the time, my two children hoping for the best and fearing the worst. That first seizure led to a 2 week stay in ICU, and was the begining of Zac's journey with this illness.
They went 3 years with NO answers. Three years of hospitals, doctors,and seizures... with no answers. He went through EVERY medication approved for his age with little success. He was regularly having seizures. Zac was eventually referred to a neurosurgeon. He was entered into a surgery candidacy study. After 8 months of tests and monitoring Zac was officially diagnose with... Pharmacoresistant complex partial seizures non-operable. In plain english he had seizures from both parts of his brain, not involving his whole brain, that can't be completly controlled by medication that they felt were in-operable. Whew!
So, at that point they were stuck. As time went on his seizure activity increased and he started to develop new symptoms. A few months later they were back in Augusta for a 3rd video EEG study with hopes that they could determine which side of his brain had the most seizure activity. The good news was that 2 of the 3 video EEG's showed that the left side had more activity. The problem was that his speech could be affected if they decided to opperate. What was next? More tests of course. He had an MRI in Feb of this year with hopes that it would pinpoint his speech center, but it was inconclusive. His parents were expecting to undergo more minimally invasive procedures if the MRI didn't give them any answers, but that was not the case. Given many factors including his age and test results, the doctors suggested Intracranial EEG monitoring. Yep, actually putting electrodes on his brain to try and pinpoint seizure activity to be able to do surgery. The crazy thing is that this is a surgery in itself. The good news is that if they can pinpoint things then they can operate when the leads are removed. His parents have thought and prayed very hard about this procedure and decided that it is the best option for Zac. It will come with many sacrafices and risks. A long 1-3 week hospital stay 3 hours away from home followed by a possible 3 month post-op recovery. There are no guarantees. Memory and his peripheral vision could be affected. As of right now the procedure is going to be late summer of this year.
I can't tell you how much I admire my sister Casey, her husband DeWayne, and Zac Man for their courage. Their everyday lives have been turned upside down. My sister will be homeschooling Zac after this year, and they will go from two incomes to one. As a mother of three myself, it is everyday peace of mind that I hope to give back to them. There will be a benefit for Zac on June 18, 2011 in Thomaston, GA. As of right now, there will be a poker run, bike ride, 5k, auction, live music, kid zone with many activities for the children, BBQ plates for sale, vendors, and much more. I will be posting much more information about the benefit "Seize a cure for Zac" in the coming weeks. In the mean time, feel free to donate to "Benefit for Zac Shumate" at any United Bank branch. Help me find a cure for my nephew. Spread the word, stay tuned, and until nextime.... Count Your Blessings.

-Zac's Aunt Court