Regarding Stacey's passing....

[SacredCow]

Yesterday some ideas were being considered (see thread below) as to what DU members could do to honor her memory and/or lend any assistance to OMC and his family. Has anything been started? I really feel the need to make some gesture.




http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=105&topic_id=6987382&mesg_id=6987382

[helderheid]

1. OMC is the originator of the Ooga Booga Smooga Wooga. We

have www.oogaboogasmoogawooga.com but have not done anything with it as of yet. Perhaps now is the time.

Edited to add perhaps we could sell the pink shirts and donate the proceeds to the breast cancer society in Stacey's name?

[Hugin]

2. I did not realize that!

Capital idea, helderheid! Capital!

[stellanoir]

7. Yup that is true.

And here's the proof. . .

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=364&topic_id=2589421

It was one of the funniest moments I've ever experienced online. Check out the date and you'll understand why tensions were running a bit high on that partuclar day.

[helderheid]

10. That was a wonderful thread!

OMC: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=364&topic_id=2589421#2591179

:loveya:

[Dr. Strange]

14. That would be cool!

My sig line's ready to go!

[Hosnon]

64. Great idea. Sell pink shirts with Ooga Booga Smooga Wooga!

I'd certainly buy one!

[Lost4words]

3. I would offer my time but I think he is in the Grate Lakes Region!

I really dont know OMC other than seeing his posts and of course lately the sad News about his wife Stacey. It brakes my heart. She was so young.

8643

[SacredCow]

4. Yes, he's quite distant from me, too....

but having lost 3 family members to cancer in as many years, and with my sister as a breast cancer survivor... I want to make some kind of gesture to her memory....

[Lost4words]

9. I think its admirable of you, I have very little money to contribute,

being part of the nuevo poor, but I could commit to $5.00 if you are able to come up with something.

8643

[SacredCow]

13. I very well might send flowers for the services....

If I find out the arrangements in time, and if the family doesn't request otherwise.

My significant other is a florist, and has already said he could call it in for me through his network. I'd be happy to add anybody's name to the card if they wanted to jump on board.

[Lost4words]

30. I think I would, let me know what to do or where to send. PM me!

Thanks!
You have a good heart!

8643

[SacredCow]

34. I'll PM you once I know more....

I'll probably post a new thread, as well....

Cheers!

[Lost4words]

36. I'll be watching! nm

[Tyler Durden]

5. I teared up reading this:

http://pst.rbma.com/content/Funky_Winkerbean?date=20071003

I have a wife, too, and Lisa was always one of my favorites from that strip. I always though Les Moore was me.

[regnaD kciN]

67. If you had that reaction...

...you might want to read this site. Let's just say not many people are too thrilled with Tom Batiuk right now (myself included, as you will see).

[Tyler Durden]

73. Everyone is entitled to their opinion.

As a survivor of loved ones dying of cancer, and having stood at the death bed many times, I'll just have to keep my good opinion of Tom Batiuk.

I'll be buying the book and making donations to "Lisa's Legacy" in Stacey's name and also to "Susan Komen Center" in Detroit.

Be well.

[SacredCow]

74. My opinion....

is that most of the people posting on that board take cartoon strips WAY too seriously.

[Highway61]

6. I live close to them

like 10 minutes away. I know I am fairly new here, but please allow me to help if I can. I lost my daughter at age 20... 4 years ago, believe me, any gesture no matter how big or small gets you through. Please let me know...

[SacredCow]

8. If you (or anyone) sees any information about services...

Please post a link.

My significant other is a florist, so of course, I'm always wanting to send flowers for everything (unless the family specifies otherwise).

[helderheid]

11. where are you at? I don't know where OMC is other than near NY, I am assuming

[Highway61]

12. They are from Jersey

you can see the town on his profile...I live in the township next door. I am going to run out and get the paper now and will let you all know where the services are and when? Is it OK to post personal info here?

[zippy890]

15. thats nice of you

thoughtful. thanks

[SacredCow]

16. Much appreciated....

I'm not sure if posting personal info is allowed or not... but an obituary should have all of the necessary information.

[LibraLiz1973]

18. I think posting her obit would be ok, but I'd be careful with the names

Freepers, you know..........

[SacredCow]

19. Yeah, that's something to consider....

If it's not posted, I'd very much appreciate someone sending me the info in a PM.

[LibraLiz1973]

53. I hate that we even have to think that

but I am reminded of a post from Redstone not all that long ago saying he was being harassed by Freepers because they knew his name.

[regnaD kciN]

68. And, sadly...

...some of the denizens at a certain site of Losers Underground are starting up the exact same crap the Freepers pulled with Andy. :puke: I'd rather they not have the ability to contact OMC or his boys directly.

[mcscajun]

55. Please obtain OMC's permission before posting any personal info.

Thanks. :hi:

I also live close by, and I'll be looking to see what OMC wants as well.

[Highway61]

60. Will do

Got some emails from DU'ers....I'm all over it...no personal info

[seemunkee]

17. In honor of Stacey and my mom

Gone 6 years now after fighting breast cancer for 15 years

[Debbi801]

20. while I think the idea of donating to a charity is a good one, I am more interested...

is possibly setting up some sort of donation fund for those little boys. Two and four are awfully young, and hugely expensive to raise. The mother in me is worried about how he is going to make ends meet and still take care of those babies. :cry:

[SacredCow]

21. Very true....

Personally, I wouldn't know where to begin setting up some kind of account to help in that way. If anybody has that particular talent, by all means step up to the plate!

[The Traveler]

22. Right good point

Time to circle the wagons around one of our own, methinks. I can chip in.

[yellowdogintexas]

23. I agree with some family support here too. Anything: gift cards

for restaurants, local entertainment like movies, a cleaning service to come in and do the house once a month, emergency baby sitting fund.

now, where do we send?

[SacredCow]

25. So far, we've had one member claim to be nearby...

Highway61. Hopefully, we'll be getting some information soon.

[helderheid]

24. Absolutely - does anyone know how to start a fund for the boys?

[stellanoir]

26. Just guessing. . .

establish a trust fund with OMC as the trustee so funds could be accessible and discretionary.

[Debbi801]

29. Hopefully, some of this info will be in the obit....

A lot of times, someone close to the family in situations like this will set one up. Then, we'd just need to send funds to that bank address.

Otherwise, we'd need to figure out what we want to collect for--even buying gift cards to their favorite grocery store would be a help. Even more so if we could arrange for the groceries to be delivered.

[helderheid]

40. I think we need to arrange for this. I want to help if I can!

[SacredCow]

27. Kicking....

to keep the ball rolling.... :grouphug:

[Klukie]

28. I would love to contribute...

to a fund for their children. He is going to have such a hard time emotionally. It would be nice to help ease the financial burden.

[Lost4words]

32. I only wish I could help financially, I am nuevo poor.

[1gobluedem]

31. I would love to help

Contribute to an educational trust for the boys or anything. Please keep me in the loop.

[ClayZ]

66. We want to help too.

Please let us know if a trust fund or something, is set up.


Thanks!

K and R

[derby378]

33. Race For The Cure

I did it once, and I'll do it again - this time in honor of Stacey.

Any other takers on DU?

[SacredCow]

35. Wish there was a bike version....

my knees don't allow me to run anymore...

[Midlodemocrat]

37. When the obit is published, I will check it to see if there are

any specific requests. I know OMC's name and address.


:cry:

[SacredCow]

38. Thank you!!!!!

:grouphug:

[Midlodemocrat]

39. It's the least I can do for him.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

41. Thank you so much, my dear Midlo ...

I want to help too...

It will help us deal with this huge loss...

:hug:

[helderheid]

42. Thank you SO MUCH!

[gademocrat7]

43. please count me in for a contribution.

[hedgehog]

44. kick to keep this rolling.

[debbierlus]

45. How about a donation fund for the kids?

From what I have read, he will have to sell his house & money appears to be an issue. With two little boys, money will certainly be needed. Although, a fund for cancer donations is lovely, I think he needs help directly.

[abq e streeter]

62. not a lot here either, but

i'd send what i could----let us know...

[SacredCow]

46. Another kick...

Not letting this roll off the first page today...

[BrklynLib at work]

47. Please count me in on any plans you make....

:cry: :grouphug:

[BlueIris]

48. Kickety.

[CTyankee]

49. I would like to donate to his family but would prefer sending a check.

I'm not too good at online stuff. With so many of us on DU we ought to be able to amass a good chunk of money to help OMC get by without worry for a while. He doesn't need to be beset by money woes on top of what he has to deal with now!

[Highway61]

50. Hi again

It is not yet in the paper...It should be there tomorrow for sure and I will know where the services will be....I will provide a link in the a.m. if anyone is interested. Being I live so close I will attend and introduce myself. I am hesitant to post names here so if you want feel free to email me and I will send along to you that way. If anyone has any suggestions please let me know and as far as helping ...donating to a charity is OK but to be honest I think he will need all the help he can get being that the children are so little...not sure how to set something like that up. Whatever, like I said I am in close proximity so please feel free to email me suggestions or anything else I can do...

[SacredCow]

51. Another kick before I leave work.....

And an observation that the majority of folks seem to be leaning to the notion of helping OMC and his family, as opposed to donations in Stacey's honor. I also believe that to be the best course of action.

The question now is how do we go about it? I think that setting up an donation account with a local bank would be the easiest thing for everybody, but would probably require someone local to set it up. We could certainly send individual checks to him, but that might be more of a hassle on his end having to go deposit them, etc...

If anyone has knowledge of this type of thing, please chime in...

[mcscajun]

57. There are some wonderful ideas here, but before any fundraising begins

please check with the Admins. :hi:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/contact.html

[SacredCow]

59. I sent a quick email to the admins...

since I was the one who started this thread.

It would be great if it could be channeled through the website, but I'm betting there could be some legal ramifications in that...

[TexasBushwhacker]

52. The Breast Cancer Research Foundation ....

is the best organization, IMHO. I lost my mom to breast cancer in 2004 and did a fair amount of research to find the organization that seemed to get the most bang for the buck. I settled on the BCRF because they focus on direct grants for "innovative clinical and genetic research". It's Sheryl Crow and Anastacia's breast cancer charity of choice and I figured if it was good enough for them, it was good enough for me.

http://www.bcrfcure.org/

A great way to raise money for a cause is to sell stuff through Ebay using Mission Fish. You can designate what percentage you want to donate:

http://www.missionfish.org/

I'm not much of a collector, but I'd won an autographed guitar at a Goo Goo Dolls concert a couple of years before my mom died. I always thought I'd could sell it to raise money for charity. After she died, I put it up for auction and "advertised" on different fan sites. No bids for 2 days. Then suddenly, a crazy fan paid my "BUY IT NOW" price - $1500! I never in a million years though it would fetch that.

The stuff you sell doesn't have to be collectible. It can just be stuff you'd sell at a garage sale. The thing is, people will often pay more, knowing that at least some of the money is going to a good cause. It's a great way to raise money for your charity of choice and get rid of your crap (or your Goo Goo Dolls guitar) :loveya:

[TommyO]

71. According to the obituary (no personal information included)

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be sent to, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, P.O. Box 650309, Dallas, Texas 75265.

[Frustratedlady]

54. I've been watching for something to be posted on donations.

My vote is to donate to the boys and/or family. OMC is going to need a bunch of money in a short time, which I'm sure is not something they had budgeted for. Who does? Hopefully, the boys will get some help from Social Security. However, there are so many immediate expenses with a death it would be difficult for a young family to absorb, so any help would be a blessing. He has enough to think about, just taking care of the boys, arrangements and everything else that goes along with the loss of a loved one. I opt for taking some of that load off his shoulders.

[helderheid]

58. I totally agree with you.

[wovenpaint]

56. Please let me know where to send donation

I agree that it would be very helpful to set up a fund for the OMC family, as he's indicated concerns about their home, etc. But, I'd like to contribute to whatever evolves.
Please keep me posted. Thank you.

[helderheid]

61. k

[RFKHumphreyObama]

63. There's a Breast Cancer site that purports to make a donation when you click on a daily basis

http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2&link=ctg_bcs_home_from_ths_home_sitenav

[WildEyedLiberal]

65. I don't have much money but I'd love to help out however I can

I have always believed that OMC is one of the most genuine, down to earth DUers we have, even though he often takes a contrarian position - but I can relate to that as I'm ornery as well. :D He's a great guy and I want to help him and his sons out. Let me know what I can do to help.

[stellanoir]

69. morning kick

[mcscajun]

70. Stacey's obit was published this morning. The request is...

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be sent to, Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, P.O. Box 650309, Dallas, Texas 75265.

[helderheid]

72. Thank you so much - any chance we can also arrange a fund for the boys?

Did Stacey have life insurance?

[mcscajun]

75. For the first question, you'll need to ask the Admins, on the second,

we'll have to wait on OMC to answer that.
:hi:

[lligrd]

76. Thank You For The Information

I too hope that we can do something for OMC and the boys as well.

[lligrd]

77. Funeral Will Be Saturday nt

[SacredCow]

78. Thursday Afternoon Kick....

Still hoping that arrangements can be made to offer some assistance to OMC.

[gademocrat7]

79. Anything yet on how to help OMC and the children?

[Midlodemocrat]

80. I spoke with him this morning.

He's not ready to think about anything like that yet, but I think when the day to day needs grow, he might consider it.

Thing is, he's used to doing everything for his family himself, so he won't ask. I'm going to really try to push the issue, though.

[gademocrat7]

81. Thank you.

[helderheid]

82. Thank you - I want to help any way I can.