2013 Sara’s Garden Poker Run

2013 Sara’s Garden Poker Run

Get ready to ride! The 10th Annual Poker Run to benefit Sara’s Garden is right around the corner! It’s so hard to believe this is our 10th year for the event!

Event Date:Saturday, June 29, 2013
Sign In:8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.  Ride begins at 10:00 a.m.
Event Location:The Hope Center at Sara’s Garden220 Lawrence Ave., Wauseon, OH  43567
Rider Cost:$20 per Rider
Passenger Cost:$15 per Passenger (Optional)

Just like last year, we plan on having a photographer out on the course taking action shots of each one of the bikes as they pass by. We hope to provide everyone with a free high resolution action shot of themselves out on the poker run… so slow down and be sure to strike a pose!

If you would like to download a brochure or flyer for this year’s event to print, post and promote click on one of the links below:

  • Poker Run Promotional Flyer – DOWNLOAD

All proceeds from this event will benefit the 2013 Sara’s Garden capital campaign which is seeking to raise funds for the construction of an onsite Jackson’s House. This project is a 1-story, 8-12-bedroom facility for clients and families to stay during their treatment sessions at Sara’s Garden.

Registration Includes:

  • Poker Run entry
  • Coffee & doughnuts
  • Water for the road
  • High res action photograph
  • Lunch buffet
  • Prizes for top hands
  • $20-rider, $15-passenger (Optional)
Time
Schedule of Events
8:30 a.m.
Registration
Detailing Station Opens
Kid Ride-a-Longs
10:00 a.m.
First Bikes Out
Photo Shoot
12:00 p.m.
Lunch Buffet
1:00 p.m.
Awards
Partnership Opportunities:

“Healing” Title Partner – $4,800

  • Includes eight rider or passenger entries, event promotion, title partner signage, company promotion table, lunch presentation speech and program recognition.
  • This level of partnership will provide 40 hours of HBOT treatments or 137 hours of intervention services.

“Help” Event Partner – $1,200

  • Includes four rider or passenger entries, event partner signage and program recognition.
  • This level of partnership will provide 10 hours of HBOT treatments or 34 hours of intervention services.

“Hope” Contest Partner – $720

  • Includes contest partner signage and program recognition.
  • This level of partnership will provide 6 hours of HBOT treatments or 20 hours of intervention services.

“Inspiration” Meal Partner – $360

  • Includes meal partner signage and program recognition.
  • This level of partnership will provide 3 hours of HBOT treatments or 10 hours of intervention services.

“O2” Stop Partner – $110

  • Includes O2 stop sponsor signage and program recognition.
  • This level of partnership will provide 1 hour of HBOT treatments or 3 hours of intervention services.

For additional information regarding corporate partnership or participation in the 10th Annual Sara’s Garden Poker Run please call 419.335.SARA.

Please join us a great day of riding filled with fun, great food, auction items and fabulous prizes. Come spend the day on the open road for a great cause and meet some of the amazing people you are riding to help!

An Angel Spreads His Wings

Solange has always referred to her son Jose as her angel. He was born a healthy, happy baby. However, when Jose was just 18 months old he contracted a virus that led to a multi-organ system failure. He was first diagnosed with Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome and required dialysis, blood products and respiratory assistance.

As time went on Jose began to improve physically but his cognitive abilities seemed uncertain and he still required intensive care. Further complications ensued when Jose began convulsing during a meal. He aspirated milk into his lungs causing him to suffer a stroke. From this moment on, Jose did not develop as he should either physically or cognitively. Jose’s official diagnosis was Cerebral Palsy but he exhibited strong Autistic tendencies and traits.

By the time Jose was eight years old, he was still unable to stand or take steps independently. He crawled everywhere he needed to go. His mother had to walk behind him, holding him around the chest in order to provide the balance and support he needed to take steps. She also had to feed him at every meal as he was unable to grasp utensils or his glass by himself. He had very minimal verbalizations and was not able to follow even simple requests. He displayed almost no emotion and would not notice or acknowledge anyone entering or leaving the room.

Jose’s family was told that he would never walk independently. They were told he would not have the strength or coordination to pedal a bicycle and he would never be able to communicate beyond a few unintelligible syllables. He would spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair and need constant care and supervision.

Thanks to a loving and supportive community, Jose’s family was able to travel to Sara’s Garden from New York City in June 2012 so he could receive Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy and Autism Intervention services. By the end of his initial month of treatments Jose was starting to do things on his own. He started to initiate standing and began taking steps with minimal assistance. At meals he began holding his own drink and started using the utensils to feed himself.

His family was so thrilled at the progress Jose made that first month that they made plans to return again a month later in August. Throughout his second month of treatments Jose continued to make physical and cognitive advancements. He improved with following requests and began expressing personal choices when he needed something. He started showing more emotion and began recognizing when others would come around him. For the first time in his entire life he pedaled a tricycle all by himself and began taking his first independent steps!

Solange has said that she feels like she is living a miracle after being told for years all of the things that Jose would never be able to do. Upon returning home to New York, Jose’s mom took him back to his school to show them his progress. They were amazed at what they saw and commented that they had never before seen a child improve as fast as Jose had. Instead of being confined to a wheelchair the entire day, Jose is now in a more advanced classroom with higher functioning peers. Teachers and friends alike are now trying to keep up with Jose and his newfound freedom!

Jose continues to make gains. He is showing much more interest in the world around him. He is now able to focus on activities at home and school. Instead of eating every meal at Jose’s side, Solange is able to sit across from him and enjoy their meal together. For the first time they are able to have family movie nights as Jose is now able to watch the movie and focus on what is taking place. It brings them so much joy to hear him laugh when he sees or hears something funny. He is no longer a little boy who is constantly told all of the things he will never do.

Before coming to Sara’s Garden Jose depended on his mother for everything. That is no longer the case. Every day he becomes less and less dependent on her and for some that could be a scary thought. Thanks to Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy and Autism Intervention services at Sara’s Garden, Jose is learning what it is like to be an independent young man. Solange wouldn’t have it any other way.

No matter what you’ve been told, there is hope… and Sara’s Garden can help you find it.

New Horizons Academy at Sara’s Garden

New Horizons Academy at Sara’s Garden

New Horizons Academy at Sara’s Garden offers a holistic, all-encompassing educational path for children who have special learning needs and are preschool through grade twelve. Our mission is to provide the highest quality of educational programming available and empower children with disabilities to recognize and optimize their full potential.

New Horizons does not solely focus on any one area of development; rather, each developmental domain (social, emotional, communicative, physical, and cognitive) is developed simultaneously throughout the school day. Great importance is placed on setting high goals and expectations and providing students with the appropriate assistance required for them to achieve their individual goals. Providing an academic curriculum that is challenging is of utmost importance, while simultaneously discovering and exploring the ways our students are best able to access that curriculum.

At New Horizons, Conductive Education methodology is utilized for students who have neuromotor disabilities such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and traumatic brain injury. Use of this educational system ensures that our students are able to learn to be as independent as possible. Sensory integration is used for children who are on the autism spectrum and for any other children who would benefit from it. This assists them in their learning process and provides them with tools and strategies as they are learning to be as independent as possible.

Please visit the website at New Horizons Academy to learn more about about this exciting new educational endeavour.

2013 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Raffle

2013 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Raffle

On June 22, 2013 the Delta Eagle Riders will be raffling off a 2013 Harley-Davidson Street Glide from Napoleon Harley-Davidson. Tickets are $50.00 and include dinner the evening of the event. A percentage of the proceeds from the raffle will go to support Relay for Life and Sara’s Garden.

Event Date: Saturday, June 22, 2013
Time: 5:00 p.m.
Location: Fraternal Order of Eagles, Delta, Ohio
Ticket Cost: $50.00 (Includes dinner and chance to win prizes)
Prize List:
1st Prize: Motorcycle or $15,000.00 Cash
2nd Prize:  $1,500.00 VISA Prepaid Card
3rd Prize:  $1,000.00 VISA Prepaid Card
4th Prize:  $500.00 Cash
5th Prize: $250.00 Cash
6th Prize:  $100.00 Cash
Rules & Notes: Must be 18 years of age to win Need not be present to win Winner is responsible for taxes and fees associated with prizes

Tickets may be purchased at the Sara’s Garden main office via cash, check or credit card. For additional information regarding the 2013 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Raffle please call 419.335.7272.

What If Nobody Knows What’s Wrong?

What If Nobody Knows What’s Wrong?

Taylor became ill at the end of her sophomore year in high school when she was fifteen and a half years old. Over the course of the next year she would suffer from intense fevers, rashes all over her body and debilitating pain in her head, joints and neck.

In May 2005 Taylor was hospitalized while countless doctors and specialists attempted to diagnose her condition. Unfortunately, no one could give her an answer as to what was wrong with her. She was treated for a variety of conditions but nothing seemed to provide any relief. Taylor limped through the next year seeing specialist after specialist, making emergency room visits and missing school. She had to quit all of her activities and things she loved the most… dance, horseback riding and running.

By the following spring Taylor was so weak and wracked with fever and pain that she was hospitalized once again. For over a month a team of neurologists experimented, drugged and tested her for everything imaginable but were still unable to determine the cause of her suffering. In June 2006 Taylor was given a spinal tap which indicated a serious, deep tissue infection. Based on all of their clinical findings, doctors diagnosed Taylor with Lyme disease. Left untreated, Lyme disease can progress to more serious symptoms involving the heart and central nervous system which can be debilitating, difficult to treat and even fatal.

Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne disease in the Northern Hemisphere and is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected ticks. The disease is named after the town of Lyme, Connecticut, where a number of cases were first identified. It has long been speculated that Lyme disease was created and accidentally spread from a US biological warfare laboratory at Plum Island, just off the coast of Connecticut, by Nazi scientists recruited by the US for post-war purposes. These scientists had specialized in using ticks and mosquitoes to spread diseases in Nazi Germany during World War II.

Lyme disease is incredibly hard to diagnose due to the fact that its signs and symptoms mimic those of numerous other diseases. The flu-like symptoms which often accompany the onset of Lyme disease can easily be mistaken for viral infections, such as influenza or infectious mononucleosis. Other symptoms of Lyme disease such as joint pain can be mistaken for types of arthritis. The clinical diagnosis of Lyme disease is most often based on the patient’s personal history, as well as recent admittance of exposure to possible tick-infested areas.

For the next two years, Taylor underwent every imaginable Lyme disease treatment available. Nothing helped. By the end of 2008 Taylor was incredibly weak and had virtually no energy to do anything. She could not work and was forced to drop out of college. It was during this time Taylor’s family discovered Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT). This treatment was instrumental in turning her health and life around.

After much research Taylor’s family contacted Sara’s Garden in Wauseon, Ohio regarding possible treatment options. While receiving HBOT at Sara’s Garden, Taylor finally turned a corner in her recovery. The pain that she had lived with for so long was was diminishing with each treatment and her energy had returned. She was now able to complete college, started a job at a hospital as a phlebotomist, got married and began a whole new life.

In January 2012, Taylor and her husband became concerned when she skipped a menstrual cycle and started hot flashing severely. Five different doctors diagnosed Taylor with premature ovarian failure and told her she would never be able to get pregnant and have children without an egg donor. She was devastated. Her dreams of starting her own family were now suddenly taken away.

While waiting to see a reproductive endocrinologist Taylor again contacted Sara’s Garden. Given Taylor’s medical history of Lyme disease it was suggested that HBOT could assist in eradicating any remaining active Lyme bacteria present and that the treatments could also help rejuvenate hormone levels and functionality. Taylor again began receiving Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy. Soon after, Taylor went to her appointment with the reproductive specialist. He couldn’t explain it, but Taylor’s uterus and ovaries were now very healthy and she was deemed fertile. Several months later Taylor was overjoyed to learn that she was now pregnant and she had not needed any drugs or medical assistance in order to conceive!

Thanks to Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy at Sara’s Garden, Taylor’s life has been changed forever. Her health, her life and her dreams of starting a family have been restored. No matter what you’ve been told, there is hope… for this and many other conditions. HBOT is treatment without drugs… without surgery… without pain.

2012 “Drive Fore Hope” Photos

2012 “Drive Fore Hope” Photos

Friday, September 14th was the first Annual Sara’s Garden “Drive Fore Hope” Charity Golf Scramble. The light rain and overcast skies broke just prior to registration and we ended up having a fantastic day for the event. We would like to thank all of the volunteers, participants and sponsors that helped make this event possible.

Below are photos from the event. Click on a thumbnail to see a larger version. 

Volunteers: We are so grateful for your willing participation and involvement in supporting our event. Thank you so much for all of your work!

Participants: Thank you for taking time out of your day to spend it with us at Ironwood Golf Course. We hope you all enjoyed the event and look forward to seeing you again next summer.

Sponsors: Thank you so much for your sponsorship of this event. Because of your support we were able to provide fantastic prizes and raise almost $15,000 to help fund the Sara’s Garden’s financial aid scholarship program.

Platinum Title Sponsor

  • Riley Tractor Parts

Gold Event Sponsors

  • Rupp Seeds, Inc.
  • Wauseon Machine and Manufacturing

Silver Contest Sponsor

  • Archbold Subway

Bronze Meal Sponsors

  • Andres O’Neil & Lowe
  • Farmers & Merchants State Bank
  • Fitzenrider
  • German Mutual Insurance
  • Samuel Mancino’s Archbold
  • Wood Trucking

Product/Award Sponsors

  • Callaway Golf Company
  • Golfsmith
  • Ironwood Golf Course
  • TaylorMade Golf Company
  • Warrior Custom Golf

O2 Tee Sponsors

  • American Legion Post 300
  • Aquatek Water Conditioning
  • Archbold Container Corporation
  • Auto Images
  • Automatic Feed Company
  • Barber Kaper Stamm Robinson & Mcwatters
  • Beck Insurance Agency
  • Black Swamp Equipment
  • Car 1
  • Certified Document Destruction
  • D & G Welding
  • David L. Geringer P.E.
  • Edward Jones Wauseon
  • Fraker & Wyse Construction
  • Fulton Industries
  • Gerken Paving, Inc.
  • Great Lakes Gypsum
  • Lugbill Supply Center
  • M & R Redi Mix Inc.
  • OK Electric
  • Pettisville Grain
  • Roger & Sharon Frey
  • Rupp/Rosebrock, Inc.
  • Schultz Realty
  • Short Agency Wauseon
  • Sonit Systems
  • Tomahawk Printing

We are so grateful for everyone that took part in our “Drive Fore Hope” and are so proud to be a part of such a caring and supportive community.

Concussion puts NHL Dreams on Ice

Concussion puts NHL Dreams on Ice

There can be no denying that hockey is Canada’s national game. It is on television and radio all day… every day. Virtually every young Canadian dreams of playing in the National Hockey League when they grow up. Stratford, Ontario’s Joey Hishon was no exception. In June 2010 those dreams were on their way to becoming a reality as Joey was selected by the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft. As he donned the Avalanche jersey and stood there on the stage of the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, it began to sink in that all of the hard work and late night skates had finally paid off.

Joey went on to play his final season of Canadian junior ice hockey. He led the Owen Sound Attack in scoring with 87 points (37 goals, 50 assists) averaging an impressive 1.74 points per game. He was instrumental in guiding the Attack to the J. Ross Robertson Cup as the 2010-11 Ontario Hockey League Champions.

Everything was going according to plan. Joey was to compete in one final Memorial Cup tournament before heading to Colorado for training camp to fulfill his dreams of playing in the NHL. The Memorial Cup is awarded annually to the Canadian Hockey League champion. It is a four-team tournament between a host team and the champions of the Ontario Hockey League, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and Western Hockey League and is the pinnacle of junior hockey success.

On May 21, 2011 Joey’s dreams of playing in the NHL were in danger of being put on ice as he sustained a violent, illegal elbow to his head in his team’s first game of the Memorial Cup. Blood dripped from his face as he lay on the ice before being helped off by staff and teammates. Joey was diagnosed with a concussion and was forced to sit out the remainder of the tournament. Little did he know that this was just the beginning of a long break from the game he loved.

Nearly four months after he was knocked out of the Memorial Cup, Joey was still not able to take part in on-ice activities at Colorado’s fall training camp. Daily headaches kept him from participating in any physical activity. As more time went by, headaches continued to provide an ongoing reminder of the injury he had received to his brain. Even on days when he would not have a headache, Joey felt like his mind was clouded, as if he were walking around in a constant fog. Any physical exertion would cause him to experience painful pressure in his head.

Doctors refused to clear Joey for play until all of his headaches and concussion symptoms had subsided. The only remedy that they would prescribe to him was rest. Before he knew it, four more months had passed and half the season was lost as his condition did not improve. Then a friend told Joey about Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy and explained how it had helped him overcome a similar injury. Unfortunately, Joey was asked not to pursue treatments and told that while there was evidence HBOT would aid in post-concussion recovery, there was no proof that it would help in the relief from headaches.

Joey was forced to continue waiting. Three more months passed and the entire 2011-12 season was lost. He could wait no longer. Joey arrived at Sara’s Garden a mere 14 days shy of the one year anniversary of his concussion. As he progressed through his round of treatments he became hopeful as the frequency of his headaches began diminishing. He started working out in his hotel’s gym and noticed that he was not experiencing the pressure in his head as he had in the past.

After completing a round of 40 HBOT treatments, Joey is now on the path to recovery and working towards becoming an NHL player like he has always dreamed of. Thanks to Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy at Sara’s Garden, Joey is back on the ice and his dream of a career in the NHL is no longer on hold.

No matter what you’ve been told, there is hope… for this and many other conditions. HBOT is treatment without drugs… without surgery… without pain.

2012 Sara’s Garden Poker Run Photos

2012 Sara’s Garden Poker Run Photos

Saturday, June 23rd was the 9th Annual Sara’s Garden Poker Run. We had such an amazing day for the ride. We would like to thank all of the volunteers, participants and sponsors that helped make this event possible.

Vounteers: As always, we are humbled by your willing participation and involvement. Thank you so much for braving the heat to check-in and check-out riders, work the stops, take photographs, and prepare the amazing meal.

Participants: Thank you again for taking time out of your day to spend it with us on this ride. We love seeing you each year and appreciate your continued support of Sara’s Garden. We hope you all enjoyed the ride and the food and look forward to hanging out with you again next summer.

Sponsors: Thank you so much for your donations to this event. Because of your support we were able to provide the winners with great prizes again this year. We are so grateful for your support and are so proud to be a part of such a caring community.

Below are photos from the event. Click on a thumbnail to see a larger version. 

We look forward to seeing you all again next year at the 10th Annual Sara’s Garden Poker Run!

Sara’s Garden Partners with Wauseon Schools

Sara’s Garden Partners with Wauseon Schools

Sara’s Garden is pleased to announce its partnership with Wauseon Schools providing gross motor and fine motor intervention services which utilize Conductive Education methodology and techniques to Wauseon students!

Through this partnership, Wauseon students, preschool through high school, who have gross motor and/or fine motor goals on their Individualized Education Program (IEP) or who have motor needs on their 504 Plan, will receive motor intervention services from the Sara’s Garden Conductive Education team within the school setting.

Wauseon Schools is unique in its decision to break away from traditional services and offer something “out-of-the-box” to students with motor development needs. Wauseon Schools documented educational progress as well as developmental and functional gains in eight students who elected to switch from traditional services to Conductive Education during the 2011-12 academic year and have now made the decision to provide this service to all its students in the district who can benefit from it.

Through this partnership, which will begin at the start of the 2012-13 school year, it is our belief that we can provide services that are cost-effective, efficient, and most importantly yield high-quality results.

As part of our desire to have all children with special needs receive the highest quality services that they deserve, Sara’s Garden is open to sharing our experience, and would be happy to help others in their attempts to achieve such a partnership in their local area. For questions on Conductive Education programming, please contact us at 419.335.7272. If you are interested in having these or similar services placed on your child’s IEP and you are outside of the Wauseon school district, please contact your local administrator(s) to make your request known. Administrators are welcome to contact Sara’s Garden and/or Wauseon Schools for more specific information.

Life Can Change in a Flash

Life Can Change in a Flash

Many families gather in the kitchen to spend time together. Rarely do we consider that the kitchen might be the most dangerous room in the house. According to the U.S. Fire Administration cooking equipment, most often a range or stovetop, is the leading cause of reported home fires and home fire injuries in the United States. Aron had made French fries for his family more times than he could count and had never had an issue… until a summer day in August that changed his life.

This time started out like any other… Aron poured some fresh vegetable oil from a brand new bottle into the pan on his glass top stove. As he began to slowly heat the oil he covered the pan. A few minutes later he lifted the lid to check on his oil and noticed that it was beginning to smoke. Not wanting to burn his new oil he began to move the pan across the stove. As he was moving the pan over to the cool side of the stove it flashed out and burst into flames.

Oil erupted from the pan and covered both of his hands. He heard sizzling sounds as his hands began to burn. Aron’s skin began bubbling up and melting off his hands as the oil ate its way all the way down to his tendons. He immediately ran both hands under cold water and called for help.

Aron’s surgeons said that the burns on his hands were quite severe. They commented that the extent of the grafting that needed to be done to repair the damage was extreme and very rare. Aron spent a full two weeks in the hospital burn unit until his hands were even able to be operated on. Following the grafting procedure to repair his hands Aron spent another two weeks in the burn unit recovering from the surgery.

Doctors cautioned Aron that he would probably not regain the full range of motion back in his fingers and that his hands would most likely function like two claws.

After being discharged from the hospital, Aron went home to begin the painful road to recovery. The medications he was given did little to mask the pain that he felt from the damaged nerves in his hands. Only a few days after returning home, Aron was in excruciating pain. His family brought him to Sara’s Garden to see if Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy would aid him in his recovery.

As the family explained what had happened to Aron, he rocked back and forth and looked as if he would pass out. The pain and nerve damage was so severe that Aron’s brain began sending messages all over his body that his feet were in pain as well. It got to the point that he could not walk without shoes on his feet. He even had to go to bed and sleep with his shoes on.

Shortly after that, Aron began HBOT treatments at Sara’s Garden. Each time he received a treatment he commented that his pain level had diminished. After completing only 17 HBOT treatments, Aron is beginning to feel like himself again. The graft sites are growing hair and are demonstrating intact skin integrity. His hands are able to perform near normal opening and closing grasps and all of his open wounds have healed.

Each time Aron would return to the hospital for his routine checkups his therapists were amazed at how fast his burns and grafts were healing. They claimed that his recovery was in the top 1% of the cases they had seen.

As he met and talked to other clients in the burn center’s waiting room, they marveled at his progress compared to that of their own. Patients who had been burned over a year prior to Aron lamented the fact that they had not experienced the level of healing that Aron had received in only one short month. Even more, the other burn patients envied his lack of pain.

Thanks to Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy at Sara’s Garden, Aron has his life back. No matter what you’ve been told, there is hope… for this and many other conditions. HBOT is treatment without drugs… without surgery… without pain.