The past week has been very busy but very exciting! Saturday, April 21 I was asked to attend and sing at the Triangle 41st annual gala, "Treasures in Flight." It was held at the Renaissance Hotel in Boston. There were about 500 people there supporting this amazing organization.Triangle empowers people with disabilities and their families to enjoy rich fulfilling lives. You can learn more about the organization by going to www.triangle-inc.org and I hope that you do. They also have a TV station produced entirely by people with disabilities called Ablevision. they are taping a show about me and the Ms. Wheelchair Massachusetts foundation on May 9th. One of the members there, Richard Mirsky played the guitar and I sang the Jason Mraz rendition of, "The Rainbow Connection." Representative Ed Markey was there as well as State Senator Paul Donato. It was a black-tie affair and very impressive! I met so many wonderful people dedicated to this organization and great people that have had their lives changed by the organization. It was a really fun evening.
Monday, April 23 I participated in the MDA Boot Camp, which is a kickoff to the Fill the Boot fundraiser done by firefighters. There were about 300 firefighters there from Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island, as well as staff and members of MDA. Since I have one of the 40 neuromuscular diseases covered by MDA, Spinal Muscular Atrophy, I gave a speech about what MDA has done in my life. It was held at the Uncas Ballroom at the Mohegan Sun. There was a great lunch, great speakers, a delicious dinner, and meeting many great people. Those firefighters are amazing; they risked their lives every day to save others and then they spend the extra time fundraising for MDA. the Chief of the Mohegans, Lynn Malerba, also attended this event and I had the honor of shaking hands with her and talking for a few minutes.
Visit my fan page at www.facebook.com/MsWheelchairMassachusetts2012PattiPanzarino. You will see many more pictures there of my appearances than I can fit on this blog. It was amazing to me that so many of the women that have won the state titles have been saying hi and posting on my fan page. It is very clear to me that in our own ways we share the same goals and I'm looking forward to meeting every participant. I started sending out sponsor letters as I must raise $3000 to cover the cost of my entry fee as well as hotel accommodations and travel expenses for the Ms. Wheelchair America 2013 pageant.
