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We are so excited about this M:TA news update because we get to share with you the outcome of our May 2nd , 5 year Anniversary celebration - it was both beautiful and meaningful and worth all of the hard work! I want to extend another special thank you to my wonderful advisory committee who helped me tremendously in making May 2nd such a success - I love you ladies! We hope that you will click here and watch the 12 minute video that was put together for the event to show what Myself: Together Again is all about and how far we have come over the last five years - Enjoy!

Debbie Speaking at May 2nd Event

There were so many special moments and highlights throughout the celebration, but I think what meant the most to me was looking out across the room and seeing 300 faces who not only love and support me, but support what we are doing as a public charity. It was also special to look out at the faces and know that there were people in attendance that I have never met personally but they support our work nonetheless. I was also very humbled by the number of doctors and medical professionals who came out to this event on a Sunday to share in our success - I think it is a true testament that they too appreciate having the M:TA booklets and website available for their patients. All in all it was such a perfect day and last but not least I have to say a HUGE thank you to our main sponsors: Blue Cross/Blue Shield of North Carolina, Rex Healthcare, UNC Hospitals, Wake Radiology, and Arthur Sandman and Elaine Sandman - thank you all for your wonderful generosity. For those of you that sponsored the celebration at some of the other levels, we want to make sure that you are recognized for your special gift so we have created a link for folks to view ALL of our sponsors. Please click here to see our sponsorship page.

Guests enjoying brunch

So, now that our celebration has wrapped up, we have been working on new ideas and projects for the future. I am still traveling when I can and hope to at least visit 3 cities/year. A few weeks ago I was able to make it out to Denver Colorado where I had several amazing meetings with folks in the medical community and at each stop along the way we left several booklets behind for the patients. I have been to Denver with the project before, (back in 2006 when we first got started), but this time I actually got into clinics and hospitals and made sure the booklets were placed in the right hands. I made some great connections while I was in Denver and I look forward to continuing to do that across the country when the opportunities arise.

Debbie with friends and supporters

In the coming months I will be having a "Team Meeting" with some plastic surgeons in the Raleigh area who have helped move M:TA forward. These surgeons have approached me about partnering with them in order to start getting the word out to people about what is NEW in the world of breast reconstruction. People have emailed me over the years and asked me to do booklets about other types of breast reconstruction other than the one we created about my Tissue Expander breast reconstruction. I have never known how to respond because I only know first hand about Tissue Expander breast reconstruction, (which still happens to be the most common type people choose), that is why even though our booklet is 5 years old - it is still so relevant. That being said, I do think its time to at least start talking on our website about other reconstruction techniques and consider even documenting, (using YouTube video perhaps), how the surgeries are performed. Again, this "Team Meeting" will hopefully create new opportunities for M:TA and most importantly get current reconstruction information out there to women. So...stay tuned.

Have a wonderful summer and please take a minute to enjoy our video above and pass it along to anyone that may need to know about M:TA.

Warm Regards,

~Debbie

More photos from the May 2nd Anniversary Event

Guests enjoying brunch and the event

Debbie presents award to Dr. Oschwald

Rose Garden Ceremony

Rose Garden Ceremony

Rose Garden Ceremony

Rose Garden Ceremony

coming up

Wednesday, July 28
Living Beyond Breast Cancer will hold a free teleconference, Breast Reconstruction: Understanding Your Options, from 12:00 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on Wednesday, July 28. Karen M. Horton, MD, MSC, FRCSC will discuss the different types of reconstruction, the stages of the reconstructive process, and how to find the option that is best for you. This teleconference is free but registration is required. Visit lbbc.org or call (610) 645-4567.

*Myself: Together Again will be mentioned as a resource during the teleconference.

Thursday, October 21
Debbie will be speaking next on October 21 at First Health Moore Regional Hospital in Pinehurst, NC. We are excited that as of this summer this hospital has started to carry the M:TA booklets. Debbie looks forward to this engagement and having an opportunity to tour their cancer center.