In the past we always used to get pizza from the local Italian restaurant in our neighborhood - Mama Roma's. Mama Roma's is a very good restaurant and offers a variety of Italian food. We will still every once in a while get take out pizza there. However, for the most part we have changed our pizza allegiance to another local "pizza joint" - Big Bill's New York Pizza.
We decided to change our pizza allegiance for personal reasons rather than anything to do with taste. (I will make no comparisons to the pizza and food from these two establishments - they are both excellent but different.) So why did we switch to Big Bill's.... Well - it has to do with leukemia and lymphoma. The proprieter of Big Bill's is a gentleman by the name of Bill Ficke. Bill's wife Joanne suffered from lymphoma for many years. Unfortunately, it eventually reached a point where she needed a bone marrow transplant to attempt to cure her lymphoma. Joanne had her transplant at the same time as my late wife Patty. Joanne and Patty were in two rooms right next to each other.
Well you can guess what happened. Neither Joanne or Patty made it through the experience. Since that time Zack and I have come to know Bill on a personal level. He is a great guy and has done so much in recent years to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). Each September 11th (in remembrance of September 11, 2001) Bill makes all the food at his restaurant free to his customers. The only thing he asks is that you make a contribution to the LLS. During the past several years Bill has raised literally tens of thousands of dollars for the LLS. He sacrifices the output of his business for an entire day to help raise money for a cause that is obvious near and dear to his heart.
Though it has been over 2 years since he lost his wife, Bill still routinely takes dozens upon dozens of pizza's into the Bone Marrow Units at PSL to provide a treat to the nurses and doctors. This is obviously something he doesn't have to do - but it is something that continues to fill his heart with joy.
Anyway - if you live in the South Metro area of Denver, consider paying Big Bill's New York Pizza a visit. They are located at the corner of Holly and County Line (in the plaza on the northwest side of the intersection).
Our day was busy as can be. We went to the Denver Zoo this morning as Zack was off of school. It was actually a really bad day to go and the place was just positively packed. There were a ton of school buses there so I am assuming a bunch of schools were having their kids go to the zoo as end of the year field trips.
After the zoo we rushed back here so that Zack could get to his appointment with Dr. Jane on time. The appointment was good and Zack has journeyed back from that stressful place he was in right after Easter. I talked over a lot of my plans with Dr. Jane to get Zack back to a maturity position that matches the other kids of his age. She thinks the plans I have developed are good and will benefit Zack greatly. (Because of all the things that took place between August 2006 and July 2008, Zack essentially lost two years of maturity and I need to work with him to catch up.)
After Zack's appointment with Dr. Jane we headed to Sylvan. This week was teacher appreciation week and Sylvan was holding a reception for teachers that the students had recommended as "Teacher's that Excel". Zack had recommended his teacher from last year at Willow Creek and had actually written a nice little statement about her. So we were there for the reception and the presentation. It was very nice.
We hope everyone had a wonderful Friday.
Thanks and peace to all! - J.
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