Kati Maloney LoPresti delivers her very first official
speech for KATI’S HOPE Foundation at the 95th
Anniversary Celebration of International Association of
Heat and Frost Insulators and Asbestos Workers Local #3
• Cleveland, Ohio held at the Crowne Plaza Cleveland
City Centre Hotel on Saturday, September 24, 2005.
Kati did such a great job introducing KATI’S HOPE
Foundation to union members and their spouses. She
presented her story with so much enthusiasm and great
joy and when she finished she received a standing
ovation.
Kati Maloney LoPresti is being presented with a ‘seed’
money check in the amount of $50,000.00 by (from left)
Mr. James P. “Bud” McCourt, General Secretary-Treasurer
and Mr. James A. Grogan, General President of the
International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators
and Asbestos Workers Local #3. Both Mr. McCourt and Mr.
Grogan were so impressed by how feisty and animated Kati
remains---while battling Malignant Mesothelioma daily.
With this very generous donation KATI’S HOPE Foundation
can pursue its goals and remain true to its vision. You
should have been there for the presentation---there
wasn’t a dry eye in the place and the ballroom was
filled with the electricity of graciousness and
goodness. Way to go, Kati!
KATI’S HOPE
Thank you Charley, for the
warm introduction. Good evening to you, Leaders and
Members of Local #3 and their spouses, special guests
and visiting dignitaries.
I’ve met quite a few of you
over the last 3 days----and some of you I’ve only just
met this evening. For those of you, whom I haven’t met,
my name is Kati Maloney LoPresti. Some of you may
remember my Dad, Joe Maloney. And I’m sure everyone
here knows my brothers, Dennis, Joey and Mickey.
I’ve just celebrated my third
anniversary---three years ago, September 9th,
I was diagnosed with malignant Mesothelioma, which I am
living and I think I’m doing really well. Oh, sure, I
won’t be able to run a marathon but I do all right. I’m
able to walk all over Boston----a city I’ve grown to
know very well. Every 21 days I fly to Boston for
treatment at the Dana Farber Cancer Research Hospital.
My treatment consists of a 30 minute IV drip of a drug
called Evastin. While I’m there I pick up a new
prescription for the oral smart drug Terceva. In other
words, I take Terceva orally every day of my life.
Terceva is called a smart drug because it targets the
tumors and cuts off the blood supply to these tumors so
they wither and fail. I have three tumors growing
in/around my aorta. The aorta is the main artery into
your heart. The tumors cannot be radiated or removed.
There are side effects to these drugs that I’m taking.
I’ve gained 65 lbs. My hair is now growing in naturally
curly and I have blotchy skin flare-ups. I have several
incisions that are painful because the nerves were
damaged. I’m not complaining. Actually, if this hadn’t
happened, I’d be very content being a wife and
mother----busy with a new house, new business
opportunities, new ways to express myself .
I have always believed that
things happen for a reason. I really believe I was
chosen to create KATI’S HOPE. I believe that I can make
a difference for victims and their families. It is a
privilege to work on behalf of so many good people who
are afflicted with Mesolthelioma. I know that we can
help our medical community make significant progress in
finding a cure for Mesolthelioma.
Our new website, katishope.com
is now up and running. We have secured 501-3C status
from the IRS---so that all the funds donated to KATI’S
HOPE will be considered a charitable donation by the
IRS.
I am sure you are aware that a
person doesn’t have to have spent an entire career
working with asbestos to be diagnosed. Dr. Janne is
treating patients in the teens and 20’s. I recently met
a woman here in Cleveland who has just been diagnosed
with Mesothelioma and she has never worked with
asbestos----aha, there’s the rub. Since asbestos can be
found everywhere in the home---from acoustic ceiling
tiles to carpeting to the wrapped furnace pipes----it
could be so easy to inhale a tiny fiber and that’s all
it takes.
I’ve established KATI’S HOPE
to help all those afflicted with Mesothelioma----whether
they’ve knowingly been exposed or not. Three years ago
I was misdiagnosed by a well known oncologist here in
Cleveland. I was told that I had lymphoma---a
treatable, curable cancer. I knew he was wrong. I knew
that I had Mesothelioma. I had seen my Dad, and Uncle
George succumb to Mesothelioma and I just knew I had
it. As an aside in defense of the oncologist who was
wrong, my surgeon, Dr. David Sugarbaker, said that a
physician in this area might see one or two cases of
Mesolthelioma in his/her entire career. You see, that’s
another reason I established KATI’S HOPE---so that never
again will another Mesolthelioma patient be
misdiagnosed.
I have been blessed with the
resources and the opportunity to receive outstanding
medical treatment in Boston. When I was first diagnosed
I thought that I would have to sell my home. My
oncologist, Dr. Pasi Janne is a medical and research
doctor in residence at Harvard University. He
specializes in the treatment of Mesothelioma. He and
his staff are constantly working on new protocols which
will enable Dr. Janne to be on the cutting edge of
treatments for us----I include myself in that group. He
and his associates are working on clinical trials
now----and he may be on the verge of a new breakthrough
which would help me----and you or a loved one or a
brother. Dr. Janne, who has agreed to be the medical
advisor for KATI’S HOPE, sends along his greetings and
best wishes and this quote.
Allow me to quote Dr.
Janne--“Mesothelioma is a difficult and challenging
disease-no one deserves to get Mesothelioma. My hope is
that with increased awareness, funding for research and
new clinical studies we will be able to extend the life
of patients with Mesothelioma and decrease their
suffering.”
It is my most earnest hope
that KATI’S HOPE will be able to fund a chair at Harvard
for the further research and development of new
protocols----and perhaps even a cure. The pricetag for
funding a research chair at Harvard approaches
$1.5MM---that’s a big number but it’s doable. And I
pledge to you right now, that I am firmly dedicated to
achieving that goal not just for me but for all of you
too.
We have plans for fundraisers,
including but not limited to golf outings, cocktails
parties, raffles for trips, and sports outings, etc. If
you are interested in helping KATI’S HOPE attain these
lofty goals, please let me hear from you.
Allow me to stop here and take
this opportunity to salute my attorney, Mike Kelly, of
Kelly and Ferraro, who has pledged a very substantial
gift to our foundation, without any prompting. Mike
generously stepped up to the plate with his pledge. He
was our first benefactor and I will be forever grateful
to him for his help and support and his great
generosity. If you can do nothing except pray for our
works, please do that. I believe in the power of
prayer. I know that many many people hold me in
prayer. And I am grateful. (UPDATE: Mike Kelly
passed away before he was able to give Kati his pledge!)
If you have heard something
you don’t understand or if you want to chat about KATI’S
HOPE, I’m all ears. Please stop me this evening and let
me know that I’ve done a really good job of explaining
Mesothelioma to you or that I need to explain things a
little better the next time. I need your input so that
I improve with every chance I get to tell people about
Mesothelioma.
In closing I would like to
thank some people who are very special to me. My husband
Michael, my children zach and hallie, who saw first hand
what Mesothelioma is when they were in Boston during my
four surgeries. A special thank you to your brother Joe
Lavelle, who has been instrumental in helping me to
believe that I can do this!
Also to my Fathers Spirit…if
he were given hope all those many years ago, I guarantee
that he would have established Joe’s Hope Foundation.
Thank you again, for this
opportunity. Enjoy the evening.
June 5, 2005 - The Gathering Place - 5th Annual Race
for the Cure
Kati's Hope Team award first place trophy for largest
team (127 walkers). Kati was asked to give a little
speech about how The Gathering Place enriched her life
and helped her stay focused after she was diagnosed with
Mesothelioma.
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