Joyce was caught being awesome!

Joyce Samples is a very special grandmother. Her willingness to help and her constant support of her daughter and granddaughter seem to know no bounds. She is a problem solver, and when she sets her mind to getting something done, it is going to happen.

We recently asked Joyce to make "lovies" for GP2C to send out to our girls as birthday gifts in September. In less than a month, she made 40!

Evie with her "lovie" that her Mimi, Joyce, made for her and 40 other girls who have Rett Syndrome.

"She is awesome, not just because she is my mom or Evie's Mimi, but because she is willing to be there for all the Rett girls and their families," said Candace (Joyce's daughter)

Joyce goes above and beyond to lend support to GP2C through volunteering. She is AWESOME and we appreciate her endless efforts. THANK YOU JOYCE!

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Want to nominate someone or someplace you caught being awesome?! Click here.

GP2C Launches New Superhero Dolls!

From chalk, to digital, to print to plush! Our GP2C Superhero is now huggable!

Our little superhero, Anna Cate, first appeared as a chalk drawing at a 5K race in Richmond, VA in November 2012. The artist, Jen Lange, then took her to the digital world. Soon after, Jen created different superhero girls inspired by each of our board and advisory board members' daughters.

Once we had such an amazing group of little superheros, we started to print them on banners and postcards and more!

We thought, "they are so cute and just jump off the page!" hmmmm maybe they CAN just jump off the page and we can make them into dolls so that everyone can have a superhero inspired by their daughter or another little superhero in their lives!

Introducing the GP2C Superhero Doll collection!

CLICK HERE TO ORDER

Each doll is 26" tall. You can choose hair and eye color as well as skin tone. There is a limited number per week that we can have made, so order soon if you want in time for the holidays!

Thank you to Emilie and Anna Cate Rabke, Adina Nickerson, and Jen Lange as well as Sabrina Nalbantian of Le Petit Creations!

3rd Annual Purple Card Giveaway

"Our Purple Card goes in every Christmas card - that way family and friends can check out her link and learn more!" 

"I love being able to hand people a card with facts and a place to learn more.When our daughter was in the hospital we handed it to residents, nurses, surgeons. We had to send someone home to get more after doctors and social workers kept coming in and asking for them.We have been told that they are they best idea ever for a special needs kid with a uncommon disorder. I could go on and on. Every member of our family has a handful in their wallet."

"Our Purple Card is sent home to all of our daughters classmates to help introduce her to her peers and their families along with a letter from me. It has been an amazing way to start building relationships at school."

"The purple card helps explain Rett Syndrome when I do not have the words, or when my daughter is with me and I do not want to talk about it in front of her. I can't say enough great things about them."

We hear stories like these and dozens more from families whose lives were changed because of their Purple Cards. We understand that a need is there to educate people about Rett Syndrome, to share YOUR story. The Purple Cards can help do just that!

And....since October is right around the corner, that means Rett Syndrome Awareness Month - we want to help you be prepared. We are giving away a set of 1,000 Purple Cards to TWO lucky winners! 

DRAWING DETAILS: 

Open to everyone worldwide! To enter, please share with us a message you would put on a billboard to tell the world about Rett Syndrome! (You may enter once per day.) In addition, you can earn extra entries by following GP2C and RettGirl.org on Twitter.

Two (2) winners will be drawn at 10 pm EST on Wednesday, September 17, 2014. Each winner will be notified via email and announced on our GP2C facebook page immediately following.

If you are not one of our two lucky winners you can order your personalized cards online for our special price of $25 for up to 1,000 cards: www.gp2c.org/thepurplecard 

As an added bonus, if you sign up for a free GP2C web page (see examples), your daughter's custom link will appear on the card so you can share more photos, tell your story, raise funds for research, and link to your blog plus other cool features!

CLICK HERE TO ENTER

Power the Flower!

We are putting a little twist on the traditional "Flower Power" saying! It's time to get the masses involved to help us POWER THE FLOWER!

How do you Power a Flower? 

You wear one!

You sign your name on one!

You post one!

You share one!

WHY?! To put the power behind our Girl Power 2 Cure flower to raise awareness and research funds for Rett Syndrome, a severe neurological disorder that mainly affects girls.

This summer is POWER THE FLOWER's big kickoff!  We are going big with our new campaign with the help of two minor league teams and their cheerleaders in Jacksonville, FL: The Axemen/Axemaidens (rugby) and the Suns/Sunbeams (baseball).

Here is a pic of our first cheerleading meeting! They will be wearing the GP2C Flower on their uniforms throughout their season. We will have a booth and volunteers at seven games reaching over 42,000 spectators! We will be taking $1 donations in the stadium for signing a flower to add to a huge Garden of Hope and putting flower tattoos on the fans!

Live in the Jacksonville area or know someone who does? Sign up to come out to one of the games and help! Click here to sign up!

We need your help to POWER THE FLOWER which we soon hope see sprouting up across the country! All proceeds from the Garden of Hope go to research.

You can share our flower right now on social media! Change you Facebook/Twitter profile pics or post to Instagram. 

#gp2c #girlpower2cure #rettsyndrome #powertheflower

Claire's Crusade: Rett University VIP Founding Member Partner

 

Today we are excited to announce a partnership with Claire's Crusade, a Rett Syndrome nonprofit based in Cleveland, Ohio (learn more at www.ClairesCrusade.org and ‘Like” www.Facebook.com/ClairesCrusade). 

On March 15, 2014, Girl Power 2 Cure launched its first educational initiative, Rett University - an e-learning platform specifically designed for educators and therapists of Rett Syndrome students. Experienced professionals share their cutting-edge knowledge on how to support their students with Rett Syndrome and push them to their highest levels of academic, physical and personal achievement.

Sean Reilly, Claire's Crusade President and Co-Founder, shared "It is with confidence that we are proud and honored to present GP2C with $10,000 on behalf of Claire's Crusade, our Board of Directors, Officers and numerous donors. We are beyond excited about the opportunity to partner with Girl Power 2 Cure as a VIP Founding Member of Rett University.

"Rett University has the potential to fill an immense void in the education system by providing a mechanism for educators to access the tools they need to effectively teach students with Rett Syndrome and successfully unlock their potential.  We look forward to collaborating with GP2C to expand upon this initial contribution and establish an ongoing scholarship program to Rett University so that many have the opportunity to achieve.”

Ingrid Harding, GP2C Executive Director, said "Claire's Crusade is deeply passionate about helping girls with Rett Syndrome. Their commitment to Rett University is invaluable. We look forward to working together to educate as many girls and their support teams as possible."

Learn more at www.rett-u.org and www.gp2c.org.

195 miles for 195 girls

So Cal Ragnar Relay Race - April 4-5, 2014

MEET TEAM SPARKLE - ULTRA RAGNAR RELAY TEAM FOR GP2C

Not only is Team Sparkle an amazing group of dedicated women returning to defend their ultra women victory last year, but Team Sparkle has taken this opportunity to run not for themselves, not for the glory of victory, but for girls with Rett Syndrome — girls who cannot run at all. 

Team member Allison Foley says, "Rett Syndrome affects my 10-year-old daughter Emma, and I can speak first hand about the devastation of this neurological disorder that has stolen Emma’s independence.  But what Rett Syndrome cannot steal from Emma or any of the girls it affects, is their courage, bravery, strength, determination and hope—traits that we believe are characteristic of our team and of this great race."  

The team is sponsored by Sparkle Athletic, (a company inspiring athletes through the power of sparkle), will be running the entire race in pink & purple Sparkle Athletic skirts and superhero capes in honor of Girl Power 2Cure and their superheroes—girls, like Emma, affected by Rett Syndrome.  Each mile will be dedicated to a girl suffering from this devastating disorder. Funds raised will be donated to the Rett Syndrome Research Trust.

195 miles for 195 girls who cannot run.

Allison:
Mom of two, who runs for her daughter because Rett Syndrome has stolen her daughter's ability to run & do anything independently. Now Allison runs for her & all the girls who can't, so that someday they will. You can follow her on instagram at @afoley09.

Carrie:
Mother of 4, with not enough time to sew, run, thrift, DIY, mountain bike, & crochet... but she sneaks it in anyway. Author of the popular blog This Mama Makes Stuff & you can follow her on twitter/ instagram at @thisiscarrie.

Danica:

She works. She runs. She eats. Then she blogs about the whole process. Author of the popular blog Chic Runner & you can follow her on twitter/ instagram at @chicrunner.

Elise:

She's an Ironman triathlete who's got a BIG sweet tooth. The Cupcake Activist burns calories so she can eat them. Resides in the city of Orange. Author of the popular blog Cupcake Activist & you can follow her on twitter at @cupcakeactivist & on instagram at @elisewallace.

Jocelyn:
She's Canadian, a matchmaker & overall a very enthusiastic runner. You can follow her on twitter/ instagram at @jcbonn.

Missy:

Wife. Mom to 4 crazy kids. Marathoner. Ironman. Large sweet tooth in search of the perfect cupcake. Author of the popular blog Sugar Coated Athlete & you can follow her on twitter at @sweetathlete & on instagram at @sugarcoatedathlete.

Thank you ladies! Can't wait to "follow" you on the course in just a few weeks!

Follow the fun on Facebook!: https://www.facebook.com/Ragnar4rett

Want to support the team with a donation? Visit http://run.teamgp2c.org/goto/teamsparkle