Joshua Cantrell, 3, died Monday. He is one of two boys related to Floyd County basketball coaches who were being treated for brain tumors.

By Jared Turner
381-1643

One Peace at a Time
Kari Thomas Kovick
Early Childhood Music Program of Floyd
February 25, 2007

One Peace at a Time is a series of music classes for children that are being held in many locations around town.  Donations are collected at the door, and matched by community members Ed Gralla and Randye Schwartz.  We have raised $900 so far!  We are singing songs for Chance and Joshua, and sending our love by playing music together. 

One of the songs is called Magic Penny, and sings:

Love is something if you give it away,
Give it away, give it away.
Love is something if you give it away,
You end up having more.

It's just like a magic penny,
Hold it tight and you won't have any.
Lend it, spend it, and you'll have so many
They'll roll all over the floor.

For love is something if you give it away,
Give it away, give it away.
Love is something if you give it away,
You end up having more.                                

(words and music by Malvina Reynolds; copyright 1955)

Soup and Sandwich Fundraiser

Lisa Mauk
Slate Mountain Presbyterian Church
February 25, 2007 

Despite icy weather earlier during the week, and blowing snow, the members of Slate Mountain Presbyterian Church warmed things up with a Soup and Sandwich Fundraiser for samefight.org, on Saturday, February 17, 2007.   Those who came out enjoyed soup, chili, sandwiches, desserts, drinks and fellowship enjoyed spending time with Joshua’s Great Grandma Ardena, Great Aunt Joan, Aunt Heidi, Uncle Jason and cousins Tori and Hunter.   There were also other cousins, aunts, family members and friends who turned out to make this evening special.   Through supper sales, donations, candle and bracelet sales, and finally a dessert auction, we were able to raise $2,170.00 to be donated to Medical Charities of Floyd for the Harman and Cantrell Families.  

I also thought that it might be neat to show a picture of the “Sharing Hope” cake that sold for $25.00 during the cake auction.   It was made and decorated by Lori Boyd (Cousin of Laura Cantrell.)

Thanks go to all of those who worked hard to make this evening a success.  
Click here to see photo's of the event.

Last night was a GREAT success at Check Elementary.  There were 120+ items up for auction.  There were people as far as Wyoming who sent in items for the auction.  A commemorative quilted wall hanging with the yellow ribbon of hope was made and donated in honor of Josh and Chance.  The wall hanging is currently at the high school to be displayed in the gym.  Many people came out for the event and spaghetti dinner.  Our estimated total is $6,000+.   When we have a final total, we will update again.  The evening was completed with an emotional ending as talent show participants, led by Lauren Sapp, dedicated a song, “The Impossible” to Josh and Chance with a reminder to keep them and their families in everyone’s prayers. If you have any questions feel free to contact me.  Also, we do not have a total from the Ruritan supper or how many they fed.  We will let you know when we get that news.

Click here to see photo's of the event.

$3,224.20 Haircut!

Pat Vaughn
Teammate
February 21, 2007

Saturday turned out to be a great day to get a hair cut in the New River Valley.  Three salons offered their hair cutting and other beauty services to charity in support of SameFight.org.  Shear Elegance Salon of Floyd raised $3,224.20. 

Stacy Thompson, owner of Shear Elegance Salon, along with Brenda Allen, Jennifer Hollandsworth and Doris Wood cut hair for 45 customers. 

In addition to hair cuts, the Salon offered breakfast, lunch and lots of baked goods.  Raffle tickets were also sold.  Starlight DJ provided back ground music.  "I appreciate all the help I received in raising this money.  Thank you for the food, donations, prayers, support, passing the word, receiving haircuts and waxing, etc." said Stacy.  It was truly a great day!   

The other salons raised $480.

Nurserymen & Landscape Association Make Donations for Joshua & Chance

A group of 31 members of the Virginia Nurserymen & Landscape Association (VNLA) have donated a total of $4,014 for Joshua Cantrell and Chance Harman.  This is the result from a letter-writing campaign by Shirley Phillips.   She was in Baltimore where her husband, Doug, and son, David, were working at the Mid-Atlantic Nursery Trade Show, and she began to look through the M.A.N.T.S. membership book.  While she was reading all the different names of the companies, she kept thinking about little Joshua and Chance who had just been diagnosed with the tumors.  Shirley recognized a lot of the names and she kept thinking about how kind-hearted these people were so she asked Doug and David what they thought about her sending a letter to these people about fund-raising for the boys.  They both agreed that it would be good.  Doug also discussed the idea with another gentleman in the nursery business who agreed that he thought it would be okay.  She then began to work on the letter.  In that letter, she wrote about the children, their families and this tragic illness that both boys had recently been diagnosed with.  An explanation was given about the Medical Charities of Floyd County and a special request was made for each person to please pray for the boys and their families, and also encouraged everyone to visit the www.samefight.org website to read the updates about Joshua and Chance.  The response from these kind-hearted people has been over-whelming.  Donations came from Riner, Radford, Salem, Floyd, Lynchburg, South Hill, Lorton, Hayes, Virginia Beach, Dillwyn, Chesapeake, Spout Springs, Glen Allen, Piney River, Boones Mill, Oak Grove, Weyers Cave, Williamsburg, Ordinary, Staunton, Hampton, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Forest, Exmore, Petersburg, Wilson (NC), and Havana (FL).  There have been a lot of really nice letters/notes sent with the donations.  Nearly all the notes stated that they were praying for Joshua and Chance.  One man in Florida wrote that he and all his employees were praying for the children.  Doug saw him at another trade show and he asked about both boys.  He told Doug to keep him up-dated and that they were all still praying for them.  Several people wrote a note thanking Shirley for contacting them.  One lady wrote that her donation was not much “but if everyone gave a little, it would soon make a lot!”  Another man wrote that he certainly knew about the financial and emotional part of a child being sick because he had a daughter who was diagnosed with C.P. 27 years ago.  Another family wrote that they felt blessed they could contribute for these two boys.  Yet another said to let him know if there was anything else they could do to help.  There have been two companies who not only sent a donation from their company but also sent one from their personal accounts.  A copy of these notes will be sent to both the Cantrell and Harman families along with a list of all the nurserymen who donated to this cause!  Shirley hopes that more donations will come in from the nurserymen and as they do the checks will be taken directly to Medical Charities.

Boy's Win For Their Coach!
Pat Vaughn
Teammate
February 9, 2007

After a day in Roanoke, taking his son Chance to visit with the Grave Digger, his favorite monster truck, Coach Brian Harman thought the day couldn't get any better.  Little did he know that his boy's would beat Eastern Montgomery HS in overtime with him on the bench.  Timmy Harris scored the shot to take them into overtime and ultimately win the game.  After the game, the team signed the winning basketball and sent it to Chance.  Chance and his Mom, Desirae, stayed home to rest after such a busy day.   Brian joined his Dad, Allen Harman, for dinner at the Blue Ridge Restaurant in Floyd.  When they went to leave, they were told that someone from Eastern Montgomery paid their check anonymously.  Brian and Allen want to take a moment hear to say, "Thankyou for our dinner!"  Brian also wants to thank everyone for their support of the Seniors last evening.  It meant so much to him and the team.

Harman Family Invited To Meet Grave Digger
Pat Vaughn
Teammate
February 9, 2007

The Harman's received an invitation this week that they could not resist.  As you probably know, from the website, Chance is a huge Monster Truck fan.  His favorite truck is known as The Grave Digger.  Through the efforts of Jeff Dalton, of the F loyd County Sheriff's Office, the Harman's made the trip from Duke University Medical Center on Thursday afternoon to meet with the driver's and to see the Monster Trucks that are in Roanoke for this weekends event.   Chance met Grave Digger's driver Randy Brown and Pastrana199's driver Courtney Jolly.  During their visit at Advance Auto Parts headquarters in Roanoke, Chance was greeted as their number one fan.  He was allowed to sit in both Monster Trucks, with his Dad of course, to smile and wave for the camera.  Brian Harman, Chance's father, told us he was all smiles.  By the end of the day and the return to Durham, he was very tired, but the look on his face when he got to sit in the Grave Digger let them know they had made the right decision.   Special thanks to Nana Harman for the pictures.   Check out Chance's Photo Album for all the photo's and a special video.   For more information on the event for this weekend and driver Courtney Jolly, check out The Roanoke Times . 

Success for three ladies!
Pat Vaughn
Teammate
2/6/07

Last weekend proved to be a great success and blessing for three ladies in Floyd.  Shirley Phillips, Joyce Slaughter and Margaret Harris set out to raise as much money as they could for three very special children.  Chance Harman and Joshua Cantrell are two children from Floyd County suffering with brain tumors.  Karlie Nichols is another child from Floyd County who is beginning her struggle with Cystic Fibrosis.  Her Grandmother, Margaret Harris, sold 243 hotdogs on Saturday, which was 143 more than she originally prepared.  Joyce Slaughter held an indoor yardsale and Shirley Phillips sold plenty of baked goods.  All together, the ladies raised more than $1,500 for these kids.   What a great success and blessing for all!

Update!  New total = $2,287.59.
2/8/07

Support floods in for boys' treatment
Fundraisers for Chance Harman and Joshua Cantrell have generated thousands of dollars.

By Jared Turner
381-1643

Days before Joshua Cantrell and Chance Harman were admitted to Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center, a community rallied behind them with a candlelight vigil at Floyd County High School.

Almost a month into what figures to be a lengthy hospital stay for the two boys fighting malignant brain tumors, the flames of support burn just as strongly.

As the 3-year-old grandson of Floyd County High School girls' basketball coach Alan Cantrell and the 4-year-old son of Buffaloes boys' basketball coach Brian Harman undergo regular radiation and chemotherapy treatment, a steady stream of donations, fundraisers and get-well wishes continue to pour in from inside and outside Floyd County.

Brian Harman has been contacted by strangers and supporters as far away as West Virginia, Tennessee and North Carolina wanting to help.

"I just don't know how to thank everybody," said the coach, who took a leave of absence from the bench in mid-December when Chance fell ill. "It just keeps going and going and going. We just don't know what to say or how to say it, really."

A volleyball tournament and barbecue dinner at Floyd County High School last weekend raised $26,000.

More than 2,000 "Sharing Hope" bracelets sold at various businesses and schools in Floyd and Montgomery counties have yielded more than $8,000.

Altogether, more than $45,000 has come in since December -- when Chance and Joshua were diagnosed less than two weeks apart.

The money will go toward medical expenses and family needs.

"You can't thank everybody," Alan Cantrell said. "There's so many people. If you start thanking a few, you're going to leave out hundreds."

Visitors to samefight.org, a Web site launched Jan. 11 with daily updates and ways to donate, have been in the thousands.

The site received 18,805 hits last month including 1,000 during its three-day construction period. It has had more than 215,000 page views.

Upcoming fundraisers posted on the site extend through May.

"Do we see a slowdown? No," said Pat Vaughn, one of the site's organizers. "Our goal as teammates at samefight.org is to keep this out in front of people because this is a long battle."

The social networking Web site Facebook.com features a group, Sharing Hope for Chance and Joshua, that had 290 members as of late Saturday.

On Saturday, February 3rd, Tazewell played Carroll County in basketball.   Bill Mitchell, from Tazewell, reported, "As for the score, Carroll County won -- so for us Tazewell fans that wasn't so great.   (But) yesterday's event went well. We raised $381.00 and there are several local businessmen who have stated that they will be sending in monies for this cause from their company. We made flyers about Chance and Joshua and handed them out to everyone as well. Many individuals stated that they would be following the boys' progress on the web site. We mailed a check last night and we are planning on doing something else in the near future."

Every event is exciting and the families appreciate these efforts more than they will ever be able to say.  We think both Tazewell and Carroll counties are winners!

Joshua Cantrell   Chance Harman

The community continues to show love and support for two Floyd County boys fighting a rare brain cancer. Friday night, a barbeque dinner was held at Floyd County High School for Joshua Cantrell and Chance Harman. Organizers say they served about 1,400 people and raised more than $16,000 for the two families. The money will help with medical expenses and family needs. Organizers say this dinner was not the last. More events to help the families will be held in the future. Saturday alone, a volleyball tournament and spaghetti supper raise even more funds to help the Cantrells and Harmons. Supporters have created a web page to list upcoming events and information on how to help the families. Click here for the link .