When not helping clients produce print projects, Casey sales executive Susan Edminson, can be found helping raise money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society through a program known as Team In Training. “It’s a cause I feel strongly about and an opportunity to stay in shape while helping other people,” she explained.

Team In Training (TNT) offers hands-on training unlike any other program. They are an established network of coaches, mentors and teammates, built by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society over the past 22 years.

TNT trains for events around the country and abroad. They challenge members to complete a marathon, half marathon, triathlon, hiking event or 100 mile bike ride. Participants can pick the event that suits them and travel to a destination with their team for a weekend. Or gear up for a local event closer to home.

To learn more about Team In Training, please visit www.teamintraining.org

With a willing heart and a ton of energy, Casey Printing Pre Press manager Annie Serrano and her family decided to “adopt”  six soldiers serving overseas. To find “adoptees”, she sent an email to her uncle Richard, U. S. Air Force, asking for names of service members that he and his wife knew were serving overseas, as well as a list of the items needed. They gathered the goods, packed it all up and shipped them to the soldiers in February.  Some of the things that were sent included toothbrushes and toothpaste, crossword puzzles,  jerky (they LOVE jerky), cards, razors, coffee, toys other hygiene items and snacks.  All six of the service members wrote emails expressing their appreciation.
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Here’s a “high five” to you and your family Annie. Thanks for helping our soldiers!

Annie’s one-year-old daughter, Rebecca, helps pack goodies to send to soldiers.

By Richard Casey

Getting old ain’t for sissies,” my dad, Harry Casey, would exclaim, somehow managing a wry grin as he tried to shift to a more comfortable position. It was Spring of 1998, and he was in the mid-stages of his progression through the debilitating pain of terminal cancer.

As the disease continued its relentless capture of his body, his mind remained sharp but his mobility decreased and his need for medical care at home became clear. At this scary time of uncertainty, he began receiving hospice care at home.  The hospice team—a registered nurse, social worker, and others, made it possible for him to live well while dying peacefully, in relative comfort, with dignity and privacy, surrounded by family. Dad’s Christian faith was strong and he was ready for the journey.  Hospice care at home made the trip a little easier for him.

This kind of care for people at the end of life is made possible in our Central Coast communities, thanks to Hospice Foundation. Throughout the year, the foundation raises money from donations and events, including a golf scramble in September, Southern Comfort, a barbecue and auction at Massa Vineyard in Arroyo Seco, and Trees of Life, a series of holiday tree lightings that honor and remember people with light dedication donations.

We had been working with Hospice Foundation as their printer for many years and I thought I had a pretty good understanding of what they were all about, then dad got sick, and his end of life care was my first encounter of how a Hospice team works on a personal level.

Through this experience I gained an appreciation for why its so important to support this kind of care.  We want to make sure it remains available to those who need it.  That’s why Casey Printing is so proud to be helping Hospice Foundation raise the funds it needs to give to local hospice care providers.

We’ve have been helping with the Trees of Life celebration here in King City since the Foundation started it in 2004.  This year it will be Sunday, Dec. 12, 5 p.m., at Robert Stanton Theater.   You might want to dedicate a light in someone’s name on the Tree of Life in Monterey, Salinas, King City or Hollister.  You’ll also be helping people across the Central Coast who need hospice care.

As I read Mother Theresa’s quote on the Hospice Foundation website, “We cannot do great things on this earth, only small things with great love,” poignant memories flood my mind recalling the thoughtful and tender, yet highly professional, end of life care my Dad received.

For more information about Hospice Foundation and to dedicate a light in someone’s name and help raise funds for local hospice care, visit www.hospicegiving.org or call 831-333-8023.