"People Helping People"-the motto of the Fraternal Order of Eagles! With that, the Hudson Eagles are pleased to invite you to join us in support of our 14th Annual Ride for Why Me-Sherry's House on Sunday Sept 8th at the Hudson MA Eagles-271 Cox Street. Registrations begin at 9:00am with Kick Stands up at 11:00am.  Donation of $20 for rider and the passenger $10.  Don't ride? Join us at 1:00 for the BBQ for a donation of $10.00.
Enjoy the great ride up to Princeton and arrive back at the Eagles around 1:15 for cookout and chances for some great donations.
Why Me is a Worcester Based non-profit organization created to help  families  who are being treated at Boston Children's Hospital and UMass Oncology cope with childhood cancer. Why Me is not affiliated with any national organization. These children come from all over the world to be treated at our great hospitals.
Why Me was started in 1985 by 13-year-old Sherry Shepherd during her four year battle with cancer. In the last months of her life, Sherry became determined to do something that would have a lasting value in the community to help children with cancer. With the help of her dad, she founded the non-profit organization WHY ME, which stands for Worcester Help for Youth, Memories Everlasting.
Today, over 36 years later, Why Me offers a comprehensive approach to supporting the entire family through a pediatric cancer diagnosis. We are here from the moment a family hears the words “your child has cancer” and continues throughout every step of their journey. When a child is diagnosed with cancer, the effect on the entire family is profound and pervasive. The initial diagnosis is devastating, followed by fear and anxiety for all that lies ahead. Pediatric cancer protocols can last years and life is disrupted not just emotionally but financially as well. Through our all-encompassing support services and programs, families find the tools and assistance needed to manage these changes. The organization continues to be managed in part by individuals who have had a child with cancer and wish to help others who now face the same challenge. This deeply felt personal perspective serves as a guiding light in delivering services that are essential, compassionate and life affirming.
What “support” means:
While a childhood cancer diagnosis may be the most difficult challenge a family can face, with tangible support, guidance and friendship, together we can make this difficult time a little easier. Through family fun events, dinners, group outings, summer camp and other programs, families forge enduring bonds of friendship through the power of a shared common experience. From support groups, to logistical and financial support, as well as staff visits – whether at home, hospital or clinic – families receive support to address the specific ways their families’ lives have been disrupted. At Why Me we are always striving to meet the unique and increased needs of every family with ever-expanding programming that benefits each child and each family here in our community now, when they need it most. All support and services Why Me provides are free of charge.

Research shows that American kids today are more likely to be anxious or depressed than American kids from a couple of decades ago. It also shows an alarmingly widening gender gap in academic achievement: the boys are getting left in the dust. This is not because girls are doing better (although they are), but primarily because boys are doing worse. Yet girls have their own challenges. While alcohol and drug use among boys has remained stable or even dropped over the last 40 years, use among girls has soared. As if these challenges weren’t enough, any parent today knows that guiding kids safely through the obstacles of social media and video games is an exhausting and uphill climb.
Dr. Leonard Sax will share evidence-based insights and research-backed solutions related to these topics and more in a series of informational sessions titled Improving the Odds for Our Kids and hosted by Mt. Calvary Church in Acton, MA, in September. A physician, psychologist, and author of the New York Times bestseller The Collapse of Parenting, Dr. Sax has spoken about topics relevant to raising and working with today’s youth at more than 500 schools, juvenile correctional facilities, communities of faith, and other venues around the world.
“I’m really excited to be bringing Dr. Sax and his message to the greater Acton community,” says Kerry Evans, one of the event organizers and a Harvard resident. “I first read his book Boys Adrift when my teenage sons were little, and it left a huge impression on me. It changed the way I raised my kids.”
“As a grandmother raising two grandchildren with ADHD, I’m excited to hear Dr. Sax’s evidence-based advice for guiding our kids to become capable, confident adults,” adds co-organizer Dawn Phelan, who is planning to attend all sessions.
But the sessions aren’t just for parents and grandparents. Educators, medical professionals, and anyone interested in supporting kids will find them relevant.
“I first heard Dr. Sax interviewed as a guest on a podcast, and I was really interested in what he had to say about the importance of ‘rites of passage’ for girls and boys on their journey to becoming healthy women and men,” says Acton resident Naomi Veeder. “Even though I don't have children of my own, I have nieces, nephews and friends' children that are in my life and that I care deeply about, and so I'm looking forward to hearing more from him on how I can support them on their journey to adulthood.”
The sessions take place Friday and Saturday, September 27 and 28 and are free and open to the public. However, because space is limited, the organizers suggest that people register ahead of time to reserve their spot. For more information and to register, visit www.mtcalvaryacton.org/improvingtheodds. If you have questions, email workshops@mtcalvaryacton.org or call (978) 263-5156. Mt. Calvary is located at 472 Massachusetts Avenue, Acton, MA. Parking (including handicap) is available behind the church, off Prospect Street. Parking attendants will direct attendees to overflow parking options.