a family for the first time

Dear Wayne and Believe in Tomorrow family,

We have gone through a life changing experience since Latasha’s diagnosis of leukemia in November. It as a shock, treatment was continuous and fast paced. She missed everything from prom to football games, trips and such that make your senior year of high school so fun. By God’s grace she is now on the road to recovery and has been in remission the past 2 months.

This trip has allowed us to vacation together as a family for the first time. Due to varying reasons we have never stayed away from home together on vacation. The hard work and dedication of Wayne, the staff, volunteers and donors have allowed us to breathe again.

We don’t know how to thank the many people who have made this wonderful trip possible. We have truly had a great time here!

Thank you again!
Lots of Love,

James Sr., James Jr, Lynn and LaTasha

Words alone can’t express...

Words alone can’t express our gratitude. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! This vacation will be remembered for so long. So thank you for the memories that we have right now. The house is gorgeous! It was such a pleasure to stay here and spend time together. Watching the sunset out across the bay is an image that I’m sure we’ll remember for awhile. The neighbors were so sweet and kind.

Some of the activities that we did were jet ski, parasail, go on the O C Becket, play mini golf, go to the Jolly Roger Water Park, and much more! I’ll have to say the parasailing and jet skis are our favorite.

So thanks again for this amazing vacation! We sure do hope that many more families have the privilege to do what we got to do.

Thank You, Gracias, Danke, Gracie

Thank You, Gracias, Danke, Gracie, in whatever language you choose we just want to say Thank You.

Words cannot express the joy we felt as we opened the door to this house. You have given us a wonderful haven to escape too. Wayne and all of your employees are exceptional.

At times we feel or felt unworthy to enjoy all of this wonderful gratitude, but as morning came and we rose to the sun rising over the bay we just smiled and said Thank You.

The Best Vacation Ever
Joe, Janice, Semone, Lauren, Nicholas and Joshua
CWRAMC – HOORAH !!!!

Dear Believe In Tomorrow,

The Strawberry family would like to express its sincerest gratitude and appreciation for the heartfelt work of the Believe In Tomorrow National Children’s foundation. Through this phenomenal foundation my family and I have experienced some of the most rewarding, loving, and cherished vacation time ever. Our visits to the Believe In Tomorrow house on Wisp Mountain in Deep Creek, Md. were truly enriched and have provided many special and lasting memories.

We were introduced to your foundation because of our daughter Daryn, who was diagnosed at 18 months with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia. Coupled with our strong faith and trust in God, the Believe In Tomorrow foundation has provided comfort, care and encouragement to what would be considered a long, hard journey. For that we are truly grateful.

As a family I can’t tell you how appreciative we are that you provided Daryn and ourselves a break from the routine of hospital visits and medicine regiments. It was an absolute joy to see the smiles created by the generosity provided through Believe In Tomorrow and to experience the beauty and richness of the open air at the Wisp Mountain house.

Keep up the great work.

Sincerely,
Bernard, Charlene, Daryn & Lynell

We enjoy watching the boats and sunset on the deck.

Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts for this wonderful chance to stay at this house. My husband and daughter enjoyed fishing in their back yard. The neighbors were wonderful and helpful. We enjoy watching the boats and sunset on the deck.

The activities kept us busy but were enjoyable. The best part was getting together at the house by the sea for the Bar-B-Que enjoying every bodies company. We made new friends.

This opportunity for us to get away from all the stress of work, and treatments, it let us remember all the fun we had. Again Thank You.

Ryan, Amy, Emily and Justyn

Fantastic long weekend!

Dear Dawn and Wayne,
Thank you so very much for a fantastic long weekend!
We had a wonderful time, and love the beach in the fall!
I’ve attached some photos of our many fun adventures.
Thank you again for giving our family this amazing opportunity.
Sincerely,
Cynthia

A wonderful time

We want to Thank Believe in Tomorrow from the bottom of our hearts for everything that you have done for us. Jared (10) and Jadon (5) have been crashing in less than 5 minutes every night, which is record time for them. Jared who was diagnosed in October of 2006 with T-Cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma – Non Hodgkins – has been going through chemotherapy since then. This has been a wonderful vacation for him. I think @ first he did not like the taste of the Ocean – But then it grew on him.

We got to do and see so much this week – we walked the boardwalk – visited the Coastguard – it was to rough to go for a ride – but we got a grand tour of everything.

The volunteers from the Ocean Pines Marina Yacht Club took us fishing and site seeing from the Ocean – We got to see some dolphins – which was amazing. We took a ride on the OC Rocket – and that was a rush – The cookout was awesome. Great Food – And Margaritas – The kids had a great time @ the magic show – arts and crafts – and lollipop the clown. All the kids and families were laughing and having a wonderful time – So good to see everyone laughing and having a good time – even through the rough times in our young ones lives – We learned a bit about Golf from Trish – Anyway – We had an absolute Blast – and never even imagined all of this— Thank you – Thank you – Thank you to all the volunteers- to Wayne – to everyone who helps keep Believe in Tomorrow alive – Thanks for making some Great Memories that will last a lifetime.

Love Jared, Jadon, Heidi and Jay

Perfect!

In one word – Perfect! The house is gorgeous, the weather was perfect, all of the activities and events were fun and enjoyed by our whole family. Thank you to everyone involved in this fabulous organization. We feel so lucky and thankful to have had this opportunity for the perfect family vacation. Since January when our son was diagnosed with AML, we have been living as two families of two. This week, however, we were able to relax and reconnect as one family of four.

The pirate adventure was a big hit with our family as was the fishing, water park at Frontiertown, and of course we all loved the beach. A million thanks to Wayne, Brian and all of the local folks who contribute their time and resources to provide families like ours with this outstanding vacation experience!

Tim, Krista, Aleksandra, Aidan

What a wonderful week.

Our thanks go out to the Believe in Tomorrow organization. Wayne is really on top of things. He kept our 14 year old son busy with many activities. All the volunteers he has are wonderful people as well. We enjoyed the cookout, the fishing trip, golf, tennis and eating both crabs and Mexican food.

Our son Bobby was diagnosed with non-hodgkins lymphoma a year ago April. He has made many positive strides since then. I know he enjoyed himself as well. We look forward to returning someday.

Take care and Thanks again,

We would like to thank all of you at "Believe In Tomorrow" for a wonderful beach vacation. The condo was fabulous and had everything we needed. Wayne and all of his staff were so nice. They had the whole week lined up for us and the kids were never bored.

Our son Cody has been thinking and saving for the beach ever since he relapsed last November. We were even late for check-in to the beach house by 24 hours because Cody was in the hospital with a fever. Cody has Stage IV Neuroblastoma for which there is no cure. We do not know what the future holds for our son. We cherish every moment we have with him, some are more stressful than others. That week gave us time to forget about the hospital and his treatments. The gift of great memories which you provide is invaluable. It's value can't be measured.

Cody started the next phase of his treatment in New York this week. It is an extremely painful treatment that he must endure. One thing is for sure, he has all of his great beach memories to get him through this. We can't thank you all enough.

Thank you!!!!
Sincerly,Mickey

What you do is truly amazing

It's very difficult to find the words to say thank you for all you've done. You're caring attitude and generosity are above and beyond. I could never have even imagined such a wonderful vacation and such wonderful people. What you do is truly amazing and we can't thank you enough. It was an incredible week and just being able to forget about cancer and chemo was awesome. Thank you again from the very bottom of our hearts.

Gratefully,

Stacey (J.P.'s mom)

Dear Believe In Tomorrow,

We had the most wonderful week. Everything was great. Thank you so much for allowing us to do all the wonderful things you provided. The kids loved the waterpark @ Jolly Rogers, and fishing on the boat. The cookout on 66th St was so much fun. Lollipop is the best! It is so nice that the volunteers donate their time and energy to families that have been through so much. Thank all of you again.

John, Brandy, Lil John, Athena, Paige & Maleah

WOW! What a terrific week

Dear Wayne & his "Fantastic Crew!"

WOW! What a terrific week we have had here in Ocean City. This was our families first introduction to the "O.C." and we can't Believe In Tomorrow more for keeping us hopping. With so much stress involved in a sick child, to have someone care enough to take the reins and say "Go, have fun on us" was priceless.

Delaney fell into bed each night completely exhausted. She had the best time in the most unusual (for her!) ways. Surfing turned out to be a blast for her and the dinners with the families were really enjoyable for the whole family.

We really do appreciate all that was offered this week and can't thank you enough! You are a really special group doing a really special thing.

Fondly!

Joe, Jami, Grady & Delaney

This has been an exciting trip

Thank you, Believe In Tomorrow. I had a great time. I met great people. The view of the beach was great.

I went to Jolly Rogers, it was so fun. I had a golf lesson and tennis lesson. I never knew I was that good at sports. We went mini golfing and played lazertag at Planet Maze, which was a lot of fun.

This has been an exciting trip. I will most likely be back soon. Thank you so very much.

Thank you!

Love, Amanda (age 11)

P.S. Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Wayne!

You are all special angels

Thank you so much for your wonderful hospitality. Wayne and his magical helpers gave us the most amazing week. Thank you to all of your wonderful businesses for their patience and gifts, they helped make this such a special week for our family. We were so fortunate to meet the other families who were visiting as well. Dillion (as well as the rest of us) were able to to make friends with the other families and just "have fun" and forget about everything. We will never be able to thank you enough for everything. Believe In Tomorrow is such an amazing organization. You are all special angels that have been sent down to take care of our special angels. Thank you so much.

Harvey, Staci, Talor, Thomas & Dillion

Thank you for EVERYTHING!

Dear Believe In Tomorrow -

What a wonderful week! From the welcome basket to the dinners to the activities - everything was so great. I think the best thing was that Wayne did all the planning. After scheduling so many appointments, dealing with health insurance and coordinating prescriptions, it was nice to not have to think. And, the activities were very appropriate. I think Kailey liked everything - the OC Rocket, mini golf, Jolly Roger Water Park, and especially the Pirate Adventure (so much fun for a 5 year old). Scott really enjoyed the opportunity to try surfing - he even got up on one knee and one leg.

The volunteers at the cookout were phenomenal. Kailey loved the entertainment and the homemade food was delicious. Everyone was so friendly - a wonderful group.

The professional photographers were great and were so patient with all of us.

The unit is also so well furnished. We brought toys and games which stayed in the car. The umbrella, beachchairs and boogie boards are so nice to have around.

Thank you for EVERYTHING! This week was so much more than we expected!

Stacey, Scott and Kailey

Thank you for caring

It is Friday night. The last night of our vacation. As we pack up and clean out our belongings, it is hard to believe that tomorrow we will be back on the road to go home. We had an awesome vacation at Ocean City, a great "home" away from home at the Believe In Tomorrow House By The Sea. This week vacation was more than I imagined. All of the volunteers and staff were beyond friendly. The other families that were on vacation while we were here were great. Our family was whole again during our stay, we all became connected through our bad and happy moments. It is a shame that it has to end. We all enjoyed our stay. There were activities to accommodate everyone. The weather was awesome all week. Thank you for this family vacation. Every time we turned around we were surprised at what was offered to us.

Thank you for caring enough to take the time to gather donations for a great cause. I am sure that there are more families like ours that would not possibly be able to go on vacation if is wasn't for Believe In Tomorrow.

Wayne,

Keep up the good work - you do an awesome job

Staff,

You're beyond polite and considerate. - Thank you :o)

Believe In Tomorrow was an awesome experience.

-Anonymous (age 14)

Hats off to everyone!

Hats off to everyone for all the work you do to make Believe In Tomorrow possible. Everyone was just wonderful - the cookout was the most relaxing evening ever. The volunteers prepared great food and provided such enjoyable entertainment for the kids.

Wayne, thanks for all the tickets for events and food. The Splash Mt. day was so much fun and Kailan wore herself and everyone else out! If you go to Splash Mt., plan to go for the day -- take food, drinks, and extra clothes and stay from 10-6. The amusement park isn't much unless you have really small children but they will enjoy the kiddy rides.

The boat ride was good; golf was fun and everyone was very pleasant and made us feel welcome.

The "House By The Sea" is such a great home away from home. The little touches - special tea bags was so refreshing and very much appreciated. It was spotless when we came and in just excellent shape.

Thank you all volunteers and all who make this facility possible.
- Kailan's Grandma

With love and thanks

First and foremost I would like to thank you for all you did and with of the comfort you provided us. From the activities to the stay in the area - it was great. We had an exceptional time. The family enjoyed every day we spent here. It was very convenient to go back and forth to the beach with it not being so far. The cookout, the activities, everything was great. As much as we hate to leave we really enjoyed our stay and hopefully we would see you soon.

With love and thanks. God Bless.

Wonderful vacation in Deep Creek

To all at Believe In Tomorrow Children's Foundation,

Thank you for the wonderful vacation in Deep Creek. The Wisp house is gorgeous. On the drive up near Bear Creek there was a bear standing on his hind legs looking at the traffic on the side of the road. That excitement set the tone for the whole trip.

Wisp was generous and with the gift card we dune buggied, mountain coaster, ski lift to see the scenery, ate dinner once there and Brian's 13 year old brother Pat got to paintball.

The boys were so excited all the way home they talked about all the "firsts" they've done. They never did any of these adventures before.

At the house we saw many hummingbirds, deer (2), a wild turkey, rabbit and ground hog while sitting on the back deck.

Enclosed is a picture of Brian. The first day - Monday- we took him to Swallow Falls. He caught 3 fish.

We also took the boys white water rafting. Everyone slept well that night. The weather was so nice Brian said we should move there. He had a great time telling everyone that Monday at Clinic.

Thanks again for the best vacation.

Unforgettable week

There are no words that can truly capture the essence of our time at BIT. It has been the most incredible, amazing, unforgettable week of our lives. There were no worries - or even thoughts - about port access, chemo, doctors or hospitals! Even knowing what to expect, everything was still wondrous. The look of happiness in J.P.'s eyes and the glowing look on his face was beyond words. The time here will never be forgotten and we are eternally grateful.

Wayne - you rock- and so do all of the BIT sponsors (especially Tyler and Lee!).

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,

Stacey, Dale, and J.P.

Just family together time!

Dear Believe In Tomorrow,

I'm writing this note on the beach. It's the last day of our stay. Thank you for giving our family this wonderful vacation!

Next week I will reminisce of our carefree beach week at Ocean City, Maryland. No doctor appointments, work schedules or chauffeur duty! Just family together time!

Many thanks to your volunteers, staff and generous donors. Believe In Tomorrow's volunteers are all very kind, sweet people who are dedicated (and determined) to put smiles on our kids faces. Mr. Wayne Littleton has to be one of the best people we know. His kindness and compassion is truly one-of-a-kind. Mr. Littleton is Santa of the Beach although he doesn't look anything like Santa Claus.

Again, Thank you to all the very generous donors - people and businesses alike. What an action packed week you gave us!

The kids said their absolute favorite thing they did was spend 2 hours go carting. They had a blast. Joey, our 9 year old, loves the ocean. We spent many, many hours at the beach. It was great.

Ever since our oldest Jimmy age 14 was diagnosed with cancer our world has been turned upside down. We no longer called the shots of our day. Our schedule has been controlled by doctor appointments, chemo schedules and sickness.

This week was the best medicine for our family to focus on us - all of us. We used this week to enjoy each other and forget our crazy schedule.

Thank you for giving us some great memories. The pictures we took this week I'm sure will put smiles on our faces.

May God bless you all!
Patrick & Alyson, Jimmy, Carolyn & Joey



Thank you so much for allowing us to come down here. I love coming here! Thank you for giving us wonderful things to do while we were here. It was a blast!
Carolyn <3

This time here in OC was great! The thing I loved the most was the great OC Rocket! I loved it! I loved the beach a little less than the OC Rocket!
-Joey

Thank you Believe In Tomorrow! We had a wonderful time!
-Jimmy

Priceless Memories

I wanted to tell you how very much we enjoyed our stay at the BIT House by the Sea a few weeks ago. It was absolutely incredible and more than we could have ever expected. I can't begin to thank you enough. Everyone was wonderful and the generosity of everyone was truly amazing. We got to do so much while we were there but if we had to name the top three, it would be parasailing, surfing and driving the Coast Guard boat. The memories we formed and the smiles I saw were priceless. It was so nice to forget about the "every day" and having/being a sick child. I have just tonight finished writing all 14 thank you notes to send out to everyone!!! :o)

I wish I could do or say more than a simple thank you, but that's all I know and I hope each and every one involved in this knows how much we appreciate everything!

As wonderful as this was, we would be honored to be able to take a mountain retreat sometime.
Again, from the very bottom of our hearts, thank you! We appreciate it more than you will ever know!!

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!

Dear Believe In Tomorrow,

We wanted to express our sincerest gratitude for the recent opportunity our family had to stay at the Children's House By The Sea. It was so much more than we ever expected, we all had such a wonderful time. Everyday was filled with so much excitement, the kids never wanted to leave.

We visited the beach, at least once a day. Some of our favorite times were in the early evening when there was practically no one around. The kids really enjoyed playing in the surf and sand, not to mention looking for seashells. We were so excited to find out we would have our family photo done at the beach, it's going to be a great keepsake.

On Tuesday evening we were treated to a lovely bar-b-que on the deck of the Children's House. We met so many wonderful volunteers, and other guests too. The children were entertained by a magician and a clown, while the adults had an opportunity to chat. I love looking at our pictures from that evening; my children have such big smiles on their faces.

Another one of our favorite adventures was when we went on a pirate cruise. It was such an interactive experience, all the children got to participate. One of the best moments was when the kids got to shoot water canons at the pirates we met along the way. Even the adults enjoyed themselves, thanks to the very friendly and creative crew.

One evening we took the Rocket speed boat ride on the ocean. We had the unexpected surprise of seeing so many playful dolphins. The captain was so kind, he stopped the boat so we could watch the dolphins play, and take pictures too. On another day, we also got another boat ride from the Coast Guard of Ocean City. Once we got out in the ocean, they actually let the kids onboard steer the ship! When we returned to base, they gave us a tour of their facilities too.

We finally finished out the week by going to the Jolly Roger Amusement and Water Park. We spent the morning in the water park going down many fun slides. We spent the afternoon at the amusement park. There were so many fun things to do; we were all exhausted by the end of the day.

As you can see, we had so many fun adventures; we couldn't possibly list them all. We are so grateful that our entire family was able to experience this trip together. We have so many memories we will cherish forever! Once again, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you!

Not a retreat, but a respite for my soul

Ever since diagnosis, not a minute has gone by without fearing death for my son. Living with fear is one of the most draining, terrifying, nightmare-producing, torturing and relentless existence. It is an unending scream in your heart, but as a divorced mother, and one that has no support by the non-custodial father and no family in the area, a very lonely one. The scream stays within. The tears are contained by the "everything is okay" smile. the truth of living in fear is locking in a treasure box deep within the soul- with no place to unravel.

Ever since the day of diagnosis, a single mother abandons everything. The comfort of her bed is exchanged for a hard folding chair in the hospital. The taste of food, all types of food, is concealed by the constant taste of coffee in the mouth to keep us going. The relaxing luxury of a bubble bath is replaced by a race of a shower listening for moaning pain of your child. You don't sleep. You just keep going because you have to. And you don't stop because you know that if you do - you won't start resting, but you will start sobbing until the sobs turn into cries and the cries turn into screams, and your son will hear you - and remember you are the "everything will be okay" mom. So you keep going, exhausted... and one day you decide to come to "Believe In Tomorrow."

When we opened the door of this unit #2 in the Believe In Tomorrow House By The Sea, we were greeted by the colors and the beautiful decorations. The yellow walls, the seashell lamps, the order and cleanliness of the unit, and the space was so inviting. You could smell the peace. You could touch the hope. You could embrace the moment.

For once in two years, I closed the door in a wonderful room of my own with an amazing bathroom, and I let the contained tears flow freely. My boys were sufficiently apart in an amazing and inviting bedroom equipped with nightlights that made them not fear the darkness. This was a safe place for me to let my feelings "unravel." A safe harbor. Not a retreat, but a respite for my soul.

In that master bedroom, the pictures of other families watched over me. I could hear their voices telling me "we understand." And I knew, they knew, and I realized I so much needed to stop. To stop thinking about death, if only for a week, and think about life. Let life hug me like a warm blanket in the freezing snow. And stay still...

What I've seen this week broke all the dreams that my imagination could handle: I saw my son turn into a pirate, a fisherman, a golfer, a speedboat "captain," a seagull, a dolphin, a Coast Guard member, a biker, a mermaid... but most of all I've seen him surf.

My son does not swim, not even float. When I stood on that beach at eight in the morning and I saw his silhouette against the blue sky on a blue surfboard over the waves... and it was real - I could not believe my eyes. Who could have told me a year ago in a hospital room where my son was struggling for his life... that I would see him surfing?

Believe In Tomorrow? I'd better start saying I cannot even believe in this week of a piece of heaven on earth where I've seen my son Living and my thoughts of death have become quieter and the waves of life entice me to press on.

I believe in today. I believe in this week. And the memories of these days I hope will never grow weak, but become stronger as I learn to trust each day to god and believe in tomorrow.

Thank you.

Thank you for sweet dreams within these walls. I can breathe better now. The magic of the dolphins hoping behind my surfing kids is a picture that I will cherish all my life.

It was amazing...

We want to thank everybody who gave us a chance to come and enjoy Ocean City Maryland. We enjoyed the Pirate Adventure and many more stuff. When we saw everything it was amazing, we couldn't believe it. It was awesome, very awesome, we couldn't wait to get on the games. Our favorite place to eat was Taco Loco, it was delicious and Hoopers Crab House, it was delicious. We loved the O.C. Rocket cause we got to see the beautiful dolphins.

Thanks so much and God Bless You!

Saul & Family

Dear Believe In Tomorrow and Volunteers,

Thank you so much for a fantastic week! Coming into this week, we had no real idea of what a treat we had in store for us! You far exceeded our expectations! The use of the condo on the beach was dream enough , but all the additional activities just blew us away. Golf, fishing, the Coast Guard visit, tennis, bike riding, dinners out, putt-putt golf, the Pirate Adventure - all served to make this a week to remember! More than that, you gave us a week of "normal" and we can't even begin to describe how special and priceless that was to us. Matt smiled ear to ear when he arrived at the condo, and didn't stop smiling until we realized our dream week was over.

From the bottom of our hearts - thank you for the absolutely fantastic week. It was a priceless experience and we thank all who volunteered their time and services to give Matt and our family a week we will never forget.

May God bless you all.

Healing for the soul

What more can we say - Our thanks always feel as though they fall short. "Thank you" just doesn't feel like enough for all the wonderful things Believe In Tomorrow does for us.

Besides all the wonderful goodies, treats, food and fun you spoil us with. Besides the fact that you let us be by the beautiful ocean which heals our souls and soothes our nerves, and you allow Gabe his hyper self to just be. Besides all this - you give the best medicine, the most potent chemo, the strongest drug that there is for healing - Joy, Happiness, Love.

Always, Always Believe
Love, Love, Love

Words can't express...

To Wayne and the Believe In Tomorrow Children's Foundation

I would just like to say thank you so much, words can't express how grateful we are and how much we appreciate what you've done for us. Ocean City is Antwon's favorite place to vacation. He loves to fish day and night. I love it because it's relaxing and peaceful. It's really nice to get away for a week and just relax and not worry about anything. The house is amazing and beautiful. You guys did a amazing job with the house. It's like living in a dream. Thank you so much for the gift basket, he really liked it. Please thank the merchants that donated for the families. And thank you for all of the activities. Antwon has had a rough time of it, and more of it to come. So thanks so much for letting us stay here and relax for awhile and forget.

Thanks,
Jackie, Anthony, Antwon and Family

P.S. Wayne your heart is like an angel. Thanks so much.

We had a blast!

We want to thank everybody who made this possible. We had such a great time. All the activities that we did were wonderful. Faith got to drive a Coast Guard Ship, and we got to see dolphins on the OC Rocket. Chip and Brittany got to go parasailing and had a blast. I think Faiths favorite thing was the cookout and the clown. Once again we just wanted to say thank you and we had a blast.

Thanks,

Donald, Tammy, Samantha, Brittany, Faith & Baen

So much fun

Dear Believe In Tomorrow,

I really enjoyed my stay here in Mallard Lakes. I really liked watching the geese and ducks. The baby geese were soooo cute! I had so much fun and can't wait to come back soon!!

Love Alexandria

I loved my stay! Thank you!

Peaceful, beautiful, and relaxing

Dear Believe In Tomorrow,

Thank you so very much for our beach vacation! We love staying at Mallard Lakes - so peaceful, beautiful, and relaxing. Thank you for all the wonderful activities and dinners. Everything was greatly appreciated! We were able to do much more than anticipated. Our boys had a blast - especially on the Pirate Adventure.

Thank you Wayne, the volunteers, John & John and all of the sponsors. We had a truly special week. You blessed us very much.

Much love and many thanks,

Mike, Lori, Caleb & Gabriel

A vacation to remember!

Wayne and Believe In Tomorrow Volunteers,

Thank you so much for an experience we will forever cherish. Brian enjoyed every activity you had planned. When he went for chemo during his stay here, his doctor asked him "do anything exciting?" and Brian responded with oh yeah I went parasailing. The look on Dr. Powells face was priceless.

This was a vacation to remember always!

Love and kisses,

Robin, Glenn, Brian & Michael

Thank you for your generosity

Dear Believe In Tomorrow,

Hello my name is Kendall and my family will like to thank you for all the fun we had this week. We went to the beach, the boardwalk, lots of restaurants, and more. We thank you for your generosity. I have to say McKenzie, my sister, had a blast!!

Love,
Kendall, McKenzie, Larry, Michelle

Cherish our time

We want to thank Wayne and all of the volunteers for their hard work and dedication. We had no idea what pleasure we were in for when we came to the beach. Everyone was extremely generous and friendly. Our son was able to "show Maeve the beach" like he wanted to even though he otherwise been unable. Your generosity is almost overwhelming with all the activities offered and such a beautiful house to stay in. We have made memories that will last forever. Maeve LOVED the beach and all of the activities our family did. She loves "DOING" - anything - she gets so excited at her young age of 10 months just watching people and having the whole family together. I am sad we have to leave tomorrow because of work schedules but will forever cherish our time spent here. The people who donate their time and dinners, photography, golf etc. will never know how grateful we truly are.

Thanks again,
Maeve (10 months)
Patrick (5 years)
Mom & Dad

We are so grateful

Dear Folks at Believe In Tomorrow,

Thank you so much for everything you do and have done for us! This is our first family vacation since Anna was diagnosed three years ago (except her MAW trip) and we have so thoroughly enjoyed every moment, every activity, and being completely spoiled by everyone. It has provided a wealth of incredible memories with Anna that my kids and I will never ever forget. How incredibly blessed we are to have found BIT and all the wonderful staff and volunteers that have made this all happen. We are so grateful for everything you have given us here - that between doctor visits, blood draws, chemo, radiation, hospital stays, ER's, fevers, scans and everything else that has completely taken over our life, it is such a joy, pleasure and relief to forget about it all for a week. Even just a short period of time - a week - is such a long time for us, not having to deal with the daily reminder of cancer.

So - thank you for a wonderful time and the wonderful people we have met that have touched our lives and hearts and will remain there forever!

Thank you for all you do!
Liz, Anna & Family

Memories

Wayne and Staff,

As we prepare to leave - we can say "we did it." We've never traveled with Hannah in the nine years we have been blessed to have her. Her health has always just been too precarious. When she started receiving palliative care we knew it was time to make our memories. Memories we have now thanks to all of you and the wonderful foundation. We couldn't have asked for more generosity, warmth and love. We have heard many good things about Believe In Tomorrow from several of our friends but the actual experience does not compare.

This week has been relaxing and our first experience as a family away from home and the hospital. A week of "first things" for Hannah - like putting her feet in the sand and riding the Ferris Wheel - YEAH.

Please express our thanks and love to all the volunteers and donors from the community who make this program possible. The Coast Guard ROCKS! What a thrill that was. We can't wait to come back! :)

Blessings,
Dan, Shelle & Hannah

Mountain retreat

Dear Believe In Tomorrow Staff and Volunteers:

We can't thank you enough for giving us this wonderful vacation. We have not had this much relaxing fun and loving time together, just the four of us in almost 2 years.

The house is beautiful and filled with great things to keep the kids - and adults - busy! We got to do a little of everything, both in the house and around the resort and lake.

We are so appreciative of the generosity of Wisp Resort. Max and Ann were very kind and attentive to us.

Olivia was finally able to make one of her wishes come true - to be able to ride a horse. It was so exciting for her and we thank Western Stables for their generosity as well.

We are sad to be leaving but look forward to coming back next year if possible. We hope all other families have as much fun as we did.

Thank you so much!!
Love,
Patty, Brian, Alexis & Olivia

A retreat from everyday trials

Dear Wayne, Dawn & Staff,

Thank you once again for a wonderful week. We don't want to go home but all good things must end, we guess.

This is truly a retreat from all the stress, troubles and everyday trials that we must go through. The ocean truly soothes us and we feel truly blessed to have had this opportunity.

Thank you for understanding and caring about our special circumstances and making special accommodations. I don't think you will truly understand how grateful we are. We had such a fantastic time. It felt like a home away from home because we felt so comfortable.

May God bless each and every one of you who have made this vacation possible.

Love always

1 week without worries and stress!

Dear Wayne, Dawn, & Every Volunteer,

In my world full of fighting; fighting everyday to keep Colton alive, fighting with insurance companies, scheduling over 75 hours of paid professionals in our house in one week, and everyone in our family feeling the fatigue, this, our CHBTS is the only true break we all get once a year. And we don't have to fight for it!

Thank you so so much for such a fantastic program, home, and vacation. Ahhh! 1 week without worries and stress! You guys rock!

Lots of love and blessings,
Jeff, Christina, Andrew, Colton, Chad, Anna, and Grandma Linda

P.S. Beautiful quilt, thank you!!

Celebrating life

To everyone that made this happen,

How great is this? Our 3 year old has been singing for 2 days! She sings "I'm so Happy." She will never forget this experience... ever!!!

Thank you for letting us celebrate life together & be a family.

Week of resting, relaxing and healing

Dear Wayne and Wonderful Volunteers,

We can not thank you enough for this beautiful week of resting, relaxing and healing. Our 14 years with Claire have been the best years of our lives but there is no denying that it can be difficult, painful and exhausting at times for all of us.

Believe In Tomorrow always helps us heal, renews our spirits and recharges our batteries. The privacy away from the nurses, therapists etc - to just be a family is priceless.

Claire enjoyed all the mommy cuddle time, the beach wheelchair walks by the water, snuggles under umbrellas, book reading, dinner at La Hacienda, baking cookies and going to the boardwalk.

Mollie celebrated her 18th birthday and got to be the center of attention (for once!) She especially loved her dinner out at La Hacienda -- what a nice owner!! He picked up our entire tab! She also enjoyed sleeping in, the beach, boardwalk and WIFI!!! Yippee!

Fiona enjoyed precious time with her mom and dad, toss the lacrosse ball, quiet one on one talks, dinner out, the boardwalk and tanning with her mom. We found special seashells and stones to remember this week.

Pat and I loved life slowing down, quieting down - being able to step back and see each other and our children. They are all priceless, precious, perfect human beings. We are all so blessed to have each other. Thank you for all the wonderful gifts, warm hugs and welcome. Thank you for taking such good care of us.

We love you all!
Lisa, Pat, Mollie (18), Claire (14) & Fiona (12)

What a retreat!

Dear Believe In Tomorrow Staff and Volunteers,

It is our first time to stay in the Believe In Tomorrow House By The Sea retreat. What a retreat! It is a wonderful place and wonderful people.

Thanks for giving us the opportunity to enjoy this time.

4 wonderful days

Dear Believe In Tomorrow Children's Foundation,

Thank you for giving us 4 wonderful days at your House By The Sea. It provided many firsts for Daniel since his injury as well as for our family.

This was Daniel's first overnight stay away from the hospital and therapy setting since last May. With your beach wheelchair he was able to go onto the beach again that he loves so much. With your indoor pool pass he was able to go swimming for the first time since last June. The Independence in mobility that your porch lift provided gave him an additional sense of Independence.

You have done an awesome job providing all the accommodations for a person with SCI - right down to the tub chair! This is much appreciated since we already have out hands full carrying all the medical supplies and equipment needed. We hope to come again!

Daniel, Mary Ann, Rachel, and Grandma too!


Thank you for letting me stay hear. I had a wonderfull time. Thank you for having a beach chair and the elvator for my brother. Hope I could come back some time.
Rachel

OC Rocks!

Thank you to everyone that has made our vacation awesome and memorable. We had such a great time. The Children's House is so nice and comfortable -- Our children love it! OC ROCKS!

Thanks again-
Michelle, Bonnie, Karina, Karly, Jordan and Nikeisha

More than we could have asked for

The first day we got here, received our key and meet some volunteers, we never could imagine what our week held for us. The house was so much more than we could have asked for. Weather has been great during the day and cool at night with some major thunderstorms.

A highlight of Ian's time here was going on the Coast Guard ship and while out at sea they allowed him to man and steer the ship from the captain's chair. :)

Every person we have come in contact with have been such kind and wonderful people. This week will stay with all of us for a life time, even though we remain having to do the everyday things for Brade with his ventilator and surgeries. Just taking the time and letting the ocean breeze hit our faces makes it easier to keep doing it.

The word thank you seems so easy to say but its the only one that expresses how we feel. Wayne - you are an angel for all you do. Your smile brightens up a room. Thank you for that. We also had the pleasure to meet 2 other families that will be friends forever.

Dinner at La Hacienda was wonderful. The last day we went para-sailing - Brade, Ian, Steve and I. What a relaxing feeling 800 ft up in the air.

We hope to come again.
With much love.

wonderful weekend

Thank you so much for such a wonderful weekend. We had a great time playing golf, rides on the boardwalk, arcade time and of course the great food OC has to offer!

Just so thankful

Thank you for all your provisions...We've already been here and it was just as fun the first time as it was the second time. And we are just so thankful for everything. We just hope we can come back again!

Thank you

Helping families bond and relax

Wayne & Friends,

Thank you for providing a place for families to go and forget about their worries. The Believe In Tomorrow House By The Sea is one of the most inspired programs to help the children who are ill along with helping the families bond and relax. It had been a wonderful weekend for Nicholas and I to spend time together - it's hard as a blended family with one child who has autism and another child who has been battling his cancer for the past 3 1/2 years to find time to just relax. You and your group of volunteers are able to do that with all the wonderful things you guys think of. We had good weather, went to the boardwalk, played mini golf (Nick and I tried with a 38 - we did good and had a blast!). We even went to this library in OC to work on a paper Nick needs to get done. The dinner out was outstanding - it's now Nick's new favorite place! As the weekend come to an end, I find that I already miss being here - just relaxing and enjoying each other. It's the little things like staying up and watching a movie together or just doing things with your family. No work or other interruptions taking away your attention.

We love you guys and hope you'll invite us back for another visit soon!

- Mary, Fred, Kathryn, Shanna, Freddy & the Main Man Nicholas

Awesome time!

We had an awesome time week here. The whole family had fun going out on the beach and going to the boardwalk. Wednesday we went to La Haciendas - La comida es excelente (the food was excellent). My dad took us fishing and we caught tautog and starfish. We also caught a toadfish but we had to put it back. We went to the arcade and got a lot of prizes. We really want to thank Wayne and the staff here for letting us stay here. We had a blast and we hope to come and visit next time we come to Ocean City. Again, thank you.

A winter retreat

To The Staff at Believe In Tomorrow,

We wanted to thank you for the wonderful time that you made possible. The coupons, t-shirts, but most importantly the living arrangements. My wife and I were amazed and very pleased with everything. We had a winter retreat that was very much needed. Words can't express our gratitude and we look forward to coming back.

God bless you,
Jason, Regina, Annastaesha & family

"a quick spring getaway"

We've been here two nights and it's lovely, The accomodations are just beautiful and are more than we could have wanted or needed.

We've spent most of our time indoors, and thats been just fine. We've played games, watched movies and enjoyed our lovely surroundings.

Today we had lunch out and that was a nice treat. The service was excellent, and the resort staff has been so professional and helpful. (Thank you Max and Kelsie!)

Tonight, our last night, my daughter and I will go tubing while the others stay home and hang out - we're really a lazy bunch. But I guess that says a lot about the accommodations! The house is a really nice place to be - my favorite spot is a chair in front of the fireplace.

On behalf of my entire family I want to again thank the Believe In Tomorrow program staff and volunteers for all you do and making this program possible. This is the second and last time we have been the grateful recipients of the program. Last August we were guests at the Beach House - it was wonderful, beyond our expectations and a thrill to be at the ocean. This time, we've taken a quick spring break getaway for 3 days. Both experiences are ones that we financially wouldn't have been able to do with our kids otherwise and we are profoundly grateful for the generosity and support that make Believe In Tomorrow possible.

This April we will celebrate one year of post-chemo living! Our daughter is strong and healthy and enjoying life. Words fail to express the gratitude we feel to be at this place in our lives - God is good.

Therefore - we are "turning in" our Believe In Tomorrow privileges and blessing to the next family who can benefit from the blessings of Believe In Tomorrow - a place to rest, regroup, refresh and renew in the midst of tough times, with the hope that they too will "graduate" from Believe In Tomorrow and pass it on. Our prayers to all the families who walk through Believe In Tomorrow's doors.

Thank you

"This place is incredible"

A great big thank you to Believe In Tomorrow, its volunteers and supporters and Wisp Mountain Resort. This place is incredible. We are really grateful for the weekend of luxury and fun!

Yesterday we learned to ski, snow tubed and rode the mountain coaster. What a wonderful day! Today we are going to see the Huskies.

Thank you for helping our special children!
Bill, Jody and Clayton

A Fantastic Week

To Believe In Tomorrow Folks:

My Son has had a grueling year with hospital stays, chemo treatments, shots, and way more than any 6 year old should have to go through. You gave us a week to forget all. A week of skiing, playing in the snow, snuggling near the fire, endless games of Monopoly, 20 Questions, and Yahtzee which delighted our little one as well as the rest of the family. Max was an angel, a snow angel!! He rocks! He took such great care of us, I can't say enough of how thoughtful he was. The new year started fantastic for us up here in Wisp, Deep Creek, and let's hope the rest of the year is as fabulous!

Love to all from, Lisa, Jim, Chris and Mikey!! :)

Wisp Mountain - just what we needed

What a beautiful place! Our family was so surprised. Thank you to all who support Believe In Tomorrow.

We had a rough Christmas/New Years with our son being in the hospital. It was a lot of stress on the whole family and this is just what we needed to get our life back where it should be. We wish our weekend would never end. We made some great memories here that we will never forget.

Thanks to all,
Rich, Carole, Steve, Ryan, Rachel