Monday is the birthday of a very special person.  Her name is Angela Blalock and she is an angel.  Angela lost her battle with ovarian cancer a few weeks ago and God welcomed her to His heavenly home.  I did not know Angela for very long, maybe 1 1/2 years, but she was one of those people with whom I immediately connected.  We met because Angela LOVED monograms. She would put her initials on anything.  Or put her grandkids' names on anything.  In the short time I knew Angela, I bet Twinkle Star Monograms did 15-20 monograms for her and another 20 for her grandchildren.  She was actually the person who got Twinkle Star started on toenail decals.  Trust me, it was not something I could have ever come up with.  That was all Angela. She was always sending me pictures or website links of items she thought I should monogram and sell.  Angela was one of my biggest cheerleaders.  I miss her a lot.

Angela also loved children - she taught for many years, most recently at my church, Methodist Children's Center at First United Methodist Church (FUMC) in Cary.  I visited her classroom a couple of times and it was a bright, cheerful place where the kids were happy and busy.  It was a dream of Angela's to go on the ZOE mission with FUMC. ZOE is an mission that empowers orphan children in Africa whose lives have been affected by AIDS/HIV.  If you want to know more about ZOE, here is the link to their website. Click here to visit ZOE.  Angela was preparing to go this past summer but did not get the chance to make the trip. 

Almost everyone has been affected by cancer in one way or another.  On Saturday,, Nov 1st, I will walk with others in the Raleigh LUNGe Forward 5K at North Hills. I have the privilege of walking with Tomma Hargraves, a 8 year survivor of lung cancer. If you would like to read Tomma's story and/or donate to my team, follow this link, click here.

So on the eve of Angela's birthday, I say a prayer for healing, comfort and cure for all those affected by cancer. I challenge you to do the same.