Onward and Upward!

Hello All,

Man have we been busy. The Marshall Women of Today raised funds to provide sleep sacks and education to all the daycares in Marshall area. Yesterday and Monday we spent the day talking with some wonderful daycare providers. It was so great to see them doing all they can to keep babies safe if their care. I continue to be amazed at the lack of knowledge on rebreathing. Rebreathing deaths are %100 preventable yet the lack of knowledge is causing these deaths to continue to occur at an alarming rate. Tonight we are at the Springfield Community Center for a vendor event and making some great contacts. We are always looking for more places and ways to spread Dominick’s safe sleep message. The last few days have been so very emotional for me. It feels so good to be spreading his message and knowing that we are making a difference. However, the callous and thoughtless words of others seem to always find their way in and cast a shadow over the joy. I have done a great deal of soul searching and thought over the last few days and come to the conclusion that if someone wants to be offended by Dominick’s safe sleep message that is ok with me. If just one baby is saved it is all worth it. I have such a hard time understanding how some people and be so stubborn and self serving. On the other hand I received an amazing thank-you card in the mail today from one of the daycare providers. It meant so much to me that she took the time to tell her just how much the sleepsacks meant to her.

Next weekend on the 17th we will be at a benifit in Redwood Falls. Check out our events page for more information on the event.

It is so exciting to watch the memorial fund continue to grow and flourish. I am so touched and honored by all the support we receive.

Update from Becky’s Blog

Well, everyone with the Dominick Bruns Memorial Fund has been busy. We have had 2 great fundraisers, one at Redwood and one at Slayton. Our Redwood memorial race was the best one yet. It was a great turn out and lots of fun was had by all. Kenny Tietz was the big winner that night. The balloon release was as special as ever. A huge thanks to all that participated. 
We also had our first ever memorial race at the Murray Co. Speedway in Slayton. It was a great success as well. Lots of thanks to Josh and all the great workers and fans at the track. We had a great time and look forward to doing it again next year.
We have upcoming fundraiser races as Jackson and Arlington so the fun is just beginning. 
We have been working with Avera Marshall Regional Medical Center to try and get the “Sweet Dreams from Baby D” program in their hospital and are hopeful that we are able to be educating  families there in a few months. 
Last week I had another great experience talking with the expectant couples at the PET (Pregnancy Education For Teens) in Willmar.  There were four great couples there and I felt like I really got through to them. When I left there I felt like they had a greater understanding of SIDS and rebreathing and were willing to be more proactive in their own health care.  It was a great feeling. That is exactly what we are here for and I was so glad to be able to provide them with the educational info and the sleep sacks. 
All in all it has been a great summer and we are looking forward to all that is yet to come!!!
Keep those babies safe and have a great day!!!!!
Becky

Hello Friends!

Hello Friends,
Man has the memorial fund been busy.  It is amazing to me to see how far we have come in a such a short period of time.  In just over 2 years we have been able to educate over 200 families on SIDS prevention. It is amazing to think how many babies lives Dominick has impacted. We are now serving the Redwood Co hospital, Renville Co Public Health and working with the PET program (pregnancy education for teens) in Kandiohi Co. We are hoping to spread further as we grow. 
Last year we achieved non-profit status through the IRS so all donations are now tax deductible.  We continue to grow in leaps and bounds.
We have an exciting summer with the memorial race in Redwood on June 20th and three other fundraising races throughout the summer. Check our events page for details. We also have something big in the works for the end of the summer. More information to come on that later! 
It still amazes me to see how far this has come and how many people on dear life can touch. I often have people ask me why I do it.  The other day our sermon at church made it all so clear. Our pastor was gone and Jan Ellingsworth filled in. During her sermon, she explained that most people are not afraid of dying. They are afraid of not living. They are afraid of being gone without make their mark on the world. Dominick never had a chance to make his mark. But by doing this, we all are giving him that chance.  I thank each and everyone of you from the bottom of my soul for helping me give him that chance.
With the most sincere thank-you,
Becky