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My
brother Pat Coburn, (left) Ontario, CA and Me, Sierra Madre, CA |
Lt. John E. “Jay” Coburn, Mateson, IL Fire
Dept. – My brother |
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His son Christopher “CJ” Coburn, Mateson, Il |
His other son Nathan “Nate” Coburn, Mateson Il |
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DOT COM DINING A Look At San
Gabriel Valley Restaurants by SanGabrielValleyMenus.com
Heads to be Shaved for
Charity at Matt Denny’s Ale House Restaurant, Village Pizzeria, Other Local
Restaurants/Businesses Also Pitch In
By Bill Coburn
Local restaurants and
businesses have stepped up to the plate (or should we say barber chair) to
sponsor Dot Com Dining author Bill Coburn as he shaves his head and beard to
help fund childhood cancer research, as part of the St. Baldrick's Day
festivities to be held at
Matt Denny's Ale House Restaurant on Tuesday, March 8th, around
6:30pm. This is Matt Denny's fourth year hosting the event locally, and thirty
men and women will shave their heads. Shaving will be done by members of Del
Sol Salon of Arcadia. “This has been a great way to show support for the kids,
and raise much needed funds for cancer research.” Says Matt McSweeney, owner of
Matt Denny’s. In the first three years Matt Denny’s has participated, more than
$100,000 dollars has been raised at this venue.
Cancer is the # 1 disease killer of children.
Everyday forty-six children, or two classrooms of students, are diagnosed with
cancer. Over the last twenty-five years, the incidence of childhood cancer has
increased every year. Forty years ago, childhood cancer was almost always fatal.
Today, through the advancements in diagnosis and treatment, 77 percent of the
children with cancer can now be cured. Despite this remarkable progress in
research and treatment, cancer remains the leading cause of death by disease in
children.
The St. Baldrick’s Celebration
was dreamt up in 2000 by John Bender and Enda McDonnell, two reinsurance
executives from New York City. They had been challenged by a friend and
colleague, Tim Kenny, to give back to society. For quite a while, these men and
other friends, all of whom have Irish roots, had been observing St. Patrick’s
Day in the traditional way---pints at their favorite pub, with music and
laughter in great supply.
They decided to give their celebration a little twist and help children
diagnosed with cancer. Because the treatment given these youngsters often causes
their hair to fall out, the group recruited volunteers to have their heads
shaved in public in return for pledges of financial support from friends and
family to support their sacrifice. The event became the St. Baldrick’s
Celebration, and is typically held near St. Patrick’s Day. The first year,
their goal was to raise $17,000 by shaving 17 heads. They raised $104,000. In
2004, more than $3.5 million dollars was raised. Since its inception, more
than $6.5 million dollars has been raised.
The mission of
the St. Baldrick’s Foundation is to raise awareness and funds to conquer kids’
cancer by shaving heads on St. Baldrick's Day. Cure Search National Childhood
Cancer Foundation is the primary beneficiary of St. Baldrick’s efforts.
CureSearch NCCF supports the work of CureSearch Children’s Oncology Group, a
network of physicians, nurses and scientists who conduct clinical trials in
childhood cancer and perform cutting-edge research at more than 200 member
institutions, representing every pediatric cancer program in North America,
treating over 90 percent of children with cancer in North America. As a result
of CureSearch COG’s collaborative research effort, the cancer death rate has
dropped more dramatically for children than for any other age group, and has
directly led to significant increases in cure rates for childhood cancer.
I got an e-mail from my
firefighter brother, Lt. John Coburn of the Mateson IL Fire Dept., telling me
that his department was going to participate in St. Baldrick's, and telling us
where we could sign up online to sponsor him. Online, I saw that two of his
teenage sons, C.J. and Nathan, had also signed up to have their heads shaved.
Shortly after that e-mail, my other brother, Pat Coburn, who lives in Ontario,
said that he was going to try and support Jay's efforts by shaving his head as
well. I vacillated for a while, but decided that if I could find 10 companies
to sponsor me with a minimum $25 donation, there would be five Coburns shaving
their respective heads, and I’d throw in my beard, as well. As of this writing,
I have pledges of $700.
To find out more about St.
Baldrick's,Day, and to make a donation, visit their website at
www.stbaldricks.org. Or you can call 1 888 899-BALD to make a donation by
phone. You will receive a tax donation certification in the mail or by e-mail.
My sincere thanks to all the businesses that have agreed to sponsor me, with
special thanks to Village Pizzeria in Sierra Madre, which currently has pledged
the largest donation. The sponsoring businesses are:
Top Sponsor
2nd Level
Sponsors
3rd Level
Sponsors
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Anthony's Italian Deli, Arcadia
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Arnold's Frontier Hardware, Sierra Madre
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Canadian Cafe, Monrovia
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Casa Del Rey, Sierra Madre
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Century 21 Village
Realty, Sierra Madre
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Dino's Italian Inn, Pasadena
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Highlander Liquor and
Jr. Market, Sierra Madre
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Mailbox and Postal, Sierra Madre
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Manny's El Loco, Covina
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Pizza Cart, Temple City
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Savor the Flavor,
Sierra Madre
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Sierra Madre Blvd. Grill, Sierra Madre
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Sierra Madre City
College
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Sierra Madre Brewing Company2
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Sierra Madre Pizza Company
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Webb-Martin
Realtors,
Sierra Madre
Bill Coburn is owner of SanGabrielValleyMenus.com, a restaurant website
featuring more than 160 restaurant’s menus, as well as downloadable coupons. He has
nearly 20 years experience in the restaurant business, and has been eating for
much longer than that. |
