Just Believe: the search for a cure

Stephanie Haag Guest Writer

Have you ever wished you could stop a child’s pain? Have you ever wanted to help save a child’s life?

These were the questions posed this week by the Cabrini cheerleading squad as they began taking orders for the JUSTBELIEVE bracelets.

This sale was unlike traditional fundraisers in that two-thirds of the proceeds generated were sent directly to the Dylan James Manning Foundation for TaySachs, an organization that seeks to foster awareness of this terminal disease and provide money to help find a treatment or cure. To fully understand the importance of this foundation, you must first know a little about the precious boy it was named after just about a month, 15,000 JUSTBELIEVE bracelets have already been sold.

Another simple tip is to keep the gas tank full. Once the needle drops below a quarter tank, the gas can freeze, which will result in the purchase of a whole new gas tank. For sophomore, Joe Clark, keeping his gas full in his Nissan Z3 is important. “The car is so light, gas is the only thing that holds it down.”

Make sure the antifreeze is full and check the oil. These fluids are the blood of the car, leaks and low levels can cause added stress to an engine. Also, check the breaks, break fluid and power-steering fluid, these can be easily over looked or put off.

According to Simmons, small problems can turn into major disasters come winter. “It’s a lot cheaper to have a car maintained, then it is to have it fixed.” Simmons says, “Have your mechanic look at the car now, to catch anything internal, such as a transmission problem or leaks.”

Events can occur, in the course of winter, to which no one can fore- see. Check with the carmaker to f ind out about any roadside assistance prog ram. If help is not offered though your lease or dealer, a variety of AAA memberships can help keep the car and driver safe no matter what budget.

For college students making the long trips back and forth for Thanksgiving and Christmas, it’s important to have an emergency plan. AAA’s website suggests keeping an emergency pack in the trunk consisting of jumper-cables, a blanket, a gallon of water and antifreeze, oil, a few sheets of cardboard or a sheet of chain mesh and always a spare tire.

The cardboard and chain mesh can be placed beneath a wheel that is imbedded in the snow. AAA also suggests having available cell phones fully charged when driving for an extended period of time.

Taking these steps will ensure the car makes it thought the winter. Drive safely.

It’s not like we agreed to live together forever. We’re not Bert and Ernie!”

Friendships have truly been formed if people who became close during freshman year choose to live together senior year. Sarah Madden, a senior marketing major, is cur rently living in a 6-person apartment with girls she has known since she first came to Cabrini.

“We all lived in Xavier freshman year so we’re all original Xavier girls,” Madden said.

Living with so many girls can lead to problems and arguments.

“We’re all so tight that we’ll express the problems to each other and just move on,” Madden said. The girls have known each other so long that they “know how to handle each other ”

Not every roommate situation is easy. Cathryn Amoroso, no relation to Dan Amoroso, was supposed to live with two of her friends from last year, but one didn’t return to Cabrini and the other is currently living off campus. A transfer student took their place a week into the current school year.

“She’s really messy, that’s not even the right word for it. We got

New Residence Hall is a duo of sophomore boys who have just welcomed a third roommate. The room is clean and being str ung with white Christmas lights as Ian Lightcap, an English/communication major, finishes moving in.

“Our previous roommate had to leave,” Jim Diverio, a g raphics design major, said. “He was a nice kid. But the way things were going, it wasn’ working out. Now it is.”

The atmosphere in the room is upbeat. It’s clear that the roommates get along. They have been friends since the beginning of the year. “We all go to each other’s houses,” Dan Amoroso, an English and communication major, said.

“We’re sarcastic towards each other we joke around in an argumentative manner,” Lightcap said.

These roommates are the first to admit that they are different people with different views. When an argument arises, they have agreed to always speak up and say what is bothering them.

As for rules in the room, “shoes off the rug…and fall asleep to Frank Sinatra every night,” Lightcap said.

According to his parents, Dylan, also known as DJ, is their “little angel sent from God.” Although they were pregnant five times, Dylan was their first and only child to survive. If you were to reference his “favorite” things you would think Dylan is just another happygo-lucky child. His parents list the following on their website among the things Dylan loves the most: “balloons, books, music (especially, LeAnn Rimes and the “Happy Birthday” song), playing the computer with Daddy tubby time, eating ice cream, riding in his “DJ Express Wagon,” giving HighFives, swimming with Grandpop, his friends at Nanny’s daycare, oh and lots of TLC, too!!!” However, this 2-year-old boy has a great deal more to endure than most children his age. On April 7, 2003, he was officially diagnosed with TaySachs. According to the Manning’s website, “Tay-Sachs disease is a fatal genetic disorder in children that causes progressive destruction of the central nervous system resulting in blindness, deafness, retardation, paralysis and ultimately death.” Children with the disease appear normal when they are born, but even in the best of circumstances, do not usually live beyond the age of five. Despite our modern advances in medicine, no cure or even effective treatment has been found for Tay-Sachs.

Megan Eller, freshman cheerleader who is spearheading the sale of the JUSTBELIEVE bracelets at Cabrini, has been involved with the Manning’s foundation since last Valentine’s Day, when her family as well as other members of the St. Joseph parish in Downingtown, Pa. participated in the sale of Blue Mountain candles to help raise money for the cause. According to Eller, the family got the idea for the JUSTBELIEVE bracelets from the yellow LiveStrong bracelets that benefit the Lance Armstrong Foundation to help fight cancer. In

Having personally known Dylan and his family, Eller decided to bring the fundraiser to Cabrini, knowing that the generosity of the students here could make a big difference. “The more money we raise, the better the chance to find a cure,” she noted. During my interview with her, Eller was brought to tears when talking about Dylan. “If you ever get the chance to meet Dylan, you’ll notice him because his smile and eyes light up the room.” She went on to comment about the nickname of “Angel” that is often given to Tay-Sachs babies, saying that it was a perfect description of Dylan. Finally, she read me a small portion of “DJ’s Story,” which was composed just after Dylan’s diagnosis.

If you still don’t feel connected with Dylan and would like to know what he’s going through, visit his website and read this letter, written from his perspective, which, as Eller pointed out, will “rip your heart out.” Here is just a small piece of it: “Please don’t cry for me, instead, pray that my family finds the strength to comfort and care for me so that I may accomplish my mission...Hopefully they will find a cure for the next generation of us babies so that no other child has to live this way…So, if it is truly God’s will that I must go, PLEASE ask God to let the miracle be the strength my mommy and daddy will need to HONOR my life.”

For those who did not take part in the fundraiser this week and would still like to, do not fear. After Thanksgiving break when the order of bracelets comes in, the cheerleaders will sell them once again. The bracelets will cost $3, $2 of which will be sent to the Dylan Manning Foundation for Tay-Sachs and $1 of which will go towards the uniforms for the cheerleaders.

“JUSTBELIEVE in Life, JUSTBELIEVE in Miracles, JUSTBELIEVE in a Cure.” For more information about the Dylan and his foundation, please visit http://www.djsfoundation.org. Remember you really can make a difference if you “just believe.”