Brave Gowns Clinical Trial Started & I Wanted to Share the Day with You!

Brave Gowns Clinical Trial Started & I Wanted to Share the Day with You!

It took me longer than expected and I pulled up right on time, not what I originally hoped for. Thankfully God & the universe had my back, because you see that white car right there? Well, that car was pulling away right as I was pulling up and not only was it the only spot on the block, it was also the closest spot (on the street) to the entrance. It was especially helpful due to the heaviness of the box of Brave Gowns, which leads me to the box...

This here box was filled with the 200 Brave Gowns. It's a heavy little box. I made it about four steps from my car to that bench when I started to see stars because I didn't have it gripped correctly. I regrouped, took a deep breath and hustled to the next bench about 75 feet away.

The next bench happened to be right by the entrance and I made it! It might not have been graceful, but I got there and that's when I saw said sign behind the bench which read "valet!" I'm thinking they would have let me pull up and unload the box there had I known...

Then I went inside, but there was about a 10 family wait to be able to speak with the information booth, so set the box off to the side and got in line. That's I looked over and happened to see this...

I laughed out loud! I mean, look how much Brave Gowns were already helping children and they weren't even out of the box yet!

The lady checked me in and I went to grab the box! That's when a nice women offered me a wagon! She was a lifesaver...literally! She was a nurse...

             Up, up and away we go! Sixth floor, here we come!

I can't even begin to tell you how much I love the doctor that is doing the trial. She's a tough, but gentle woman from Milwaukee, which made me even more fond of her. She could have easily have been a long lost aunt and runs the Pre & Post Op. Fun little fact here...For Pre & Post Op, they have to provide two gowns to each patient. One to cover the front and one to cover the patients back to have access to both. However, Brave Gowns eliminate this problem and the patients can move around comfortably in only one BRAVE GOWN! Well, back to the doctor, it just so happened that she felt the same way about the box as I did, so we took all the gowns out of the box and spread them all over her room so the nurses could come grab them as the pleased!

I gave here a hug, which actually might have scared her a bit, and I was on my way crying with gratitude. By the time I got to my car, I already had and email with the image below from the doctor saying "the nurses loved them so much that they wanted to wear the gowns too!"

(mind you they're not the right size ;)

How adorable are they?

        Did I mention that she even made me take the empty box? Told you I loved her!

So, I pulled away from the hospital and had talk radio on. Ok, I actually still had Joel Osteen on from the ride in and out of no where, it switched to jazz. It was so out of the blue that I Iooked down and the radio and there it was...

11:11am

It's our thing. Mac was watching. He was proud. He was letting me know it's all going to be ok! I closed my eyes and took a deep breath and for once...I exhaled, but then I quickly opened my eyes because I realized I was driving!

Last picture...

It was the first day in a year and a half that I realized I might actually get to finally change my toe nail polish color. It's called "Eternal Optimist" and I can't change it until there's a huge movement for Brave Gowns, because I swear it's brought me the most luck ever! Every time I try to wear something else, I lose my mojo, I swear...

Thank you all for being on this journey with me! It's been such a gift...

Now watch out, it's Childhood Cancer Awareness Month & we have some work to do!

Kindly & Blessed,

Summer

                                 Give-A-Gown Today! www.bravegowns.com

Summer Germann
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Last Push For 2016! Help Us Go Out With A Bang For St. Jude & Then I Hand It Off!

Last Push For 2016! Help Us Go Out With A Bang For St. Jude & Then I Hand It Off!

Hi,

So it’s me, Summer! I’ve been sitting here staring at the computer for a good five hours. I promised myself that I wouldn’t take a shower until I get this blog up. Well, I'm pretty darn greasy and I have to get to the post office to send out packages so I'm finally wearing myself down. I've answered emails, drank two cups of coffee, brought in the garbage cans, organized my daughter's school supplies, turned on a motivational tape and put a hat on, so I'm running out of distractions. I am so excited to get this message out, but I want it to be perfect and I actually want it to be a video, but I cry when I make videos and this girl has no time to cry today!

You see, I've come to terms with the fact that I'm allowed to hit my goals for Brave Gowns without being embarrassed or ashamed. When I usually hit goals, I get quite and overwhelmed. Too much goodness in the world is hard for me to bear. I feel it physically in my bones. It's paralyzing. Somewhere along the line, I learned to handle pain easier than it was to handle achievements. Because of this, I probably made some poor business choices, but you will never meet someone that listens to her gut like I do. The instant that something doesn't feel right to me, it's like I was sucker punched in the stomach and I run. It's saved me from a lot of poor decisions and anytime I tried to fight it, I regretted it with all my might, because my gut was always right.

For a year you would never have heard me talk about Brave Gowns out loud. I felt like it was something so much better than I and I wasn't worthy of being the source behind it. Then recently something just switched. I get emails, texts and calls from families every single darn day updating me on how their kids are doing. What the test results were, how the surgeries went, their MRI results, the actual images of their bone scans, etc...God picked me, because a Brave Gown isn't just a product, it is a gift of hope, a sign of someone out in the world saying, "we can't even imagine what you're going through, but we wanted to show you support from our family to yours." I was given the gift to bring Brave Gowns into the wold, because I lived it. I was in the hospital with my family at times when we thought my brother wasn't going to make it through the night. We lived through moments where we were told to say goodbye and then he lived for months and became cancer-free. We lived through multiple moments where we'd be sitting there laughing and then he'd go into cardiac and before you know it, I'd be thrown into a hall with doctors and nurses running past me and watching them revive my brother and then life would resume to be "normal" again. There is a smell that sticks with you that you never forget. Once in awhile it still hits me and I drop straight to my knees and remember how scary, yet wonderful life once was. So I do not just selling a product, I make sure that I am in contact with the families of every child that wears a Brave Gown. I know their names, the illnesses, the important dates coming up for them and their families phone numbers. I get texted when they get results and when they come back with wonderful news, we celebrate together. When scarier news comes, I provide any and all words of encouragement and offer prayers, because that is all I can be in that moment. Through their families I get a moment to be there again, with one more shot at a happy ending.

Next month, I have the opportunity to partner with an organization that is already in every children's hospital. They work closely with the child-life in the hospitals and has their own corporate and private sponsors that will be able to do what was always my end goal "PUT A BRAVE GOWN ON EVERY CHILD BATTLING AN ILLNESS!" I will still own and run Brave Gowns, but the Give-A-Gown program will be ran by them. I will still be able to "give gowns" but it will be through their "Give-A-Gown" program, so Happy Ditto would be a sponsor as well. Ironically, if we move forward together, the launch would be on Halloween. The exact date that my brother was diagnosed and the exact date where I painted his face as a zombie and triggered the thought of Brave Gowns! It's so amazing how the universe works and if you trust the process and have faith it works out exactly as it was meant to be. I can't wait to be able to sit down some day and tell the real story of Brave Gowns and all the miracles I've witnessed first hand!

With that said, I want to finish what I started and know that we finished what we set out to do! We are still 500 gowns short for St Jude. I know that we can hit this goal! I am asking that one last time you can give $36 to provide a gown for a child at St. Jude. That together we can hand this off knowing we hit our goals and that we started something that the next group is going to have huge shoes to fill and that we can say one more time, "Hey Mac, look what we did, Buddy. We did good, Kid! We did good!"

I am forever grateful for all of your support! This is just another chapter in Brave Gowns journey!

Be Blessed!

Summer

Hey Summer, I can Give-A-Gown Today!

 

Summer Germann
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Brave Gowns Are Spreading Like Wild Flowers & Bringing Smiles and Hope!

Brave Gowns Are Spreading Like Wild Flowers & Bringing Smiles and Hope!

The Brave Gowns video has been updated in the beginning and the end to show actual Brave Gowns with their new and amazing front and back designs! They just keep getting better and better!

We start another clinical trial with a children's hospital next week and are also very actively trying to raise 700 gowns for St Jude! If you can find it in your heart to sponsor a Gift-A-Gown for a child, whether it's your first time you or you have supported Brave Gowns since the get go and keep making these miracles happen now is a very crucial time. We have promised St Jude to have the gowns to them by the end of August! That's approximately $25,000 in less than a month that we have to raise! Even the smallest makes a huge difference. We are determined to bring happiness to these fighters at a time when all other children are excited to back to school, but these kids are still in the hospital fighting for their lives. It's the least we can do!

It's so easy to sponsor a gown! If you want to choose any monetary amount and receive a write-off you can go directly to www.happyditto.com.

Or if you want to sponsor the Gift-A-Gown you can click on the image below and pick the option of your choice! GIFT-A-GOWN

We've been spreading so much greatness and happiness! Please help us continue our journey!

God Bless,

Summer

www.bravegowns.com

Summer Germann
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So Many Reasons To Be Grateful! This is Karter.

So Many Reasons To Be Grateful! This is Karter.

I logged on to write a list of things I'm grateful for, which is so darn much, even though I can't get out of my own head this week. When I did, I found a family that has the love of a two year-old boy with cancer as we did for Mac. They tried to get a hold of me every which way possible, which is just what I would do. It was the aunt and I loved her from the get-go.
Here's what one message read:
He is a 2T, loves the beach and boogie boarding.. I found you on facebook, messaged you and then figured you didn't sere my message because we are not friends... So then I added you on fb so you can see the message but I don't think it was approved - that's ok! I am just trying every which way to get a hold of you. After searching your website and reading your story I immediately became angry.. A medical error. Wow. You took my breath away. I am happy to see that you found good in the worst situation and have made it a mission to help others. I couldn't love this idea more. Please let me know you got this ASAP - Thank you :)
 
Initially, I didn't realize Karter was just diagnosed with Neuroblastoma last week. You can find his story on Facebook as Saving Karter. He took my breath away. He has the blonde hair, blue eye of Mac and he loves the water and to surf. I'm pretty sure Mac sent this story my way, to remind me that there's a reason I'm doing this and to never forget. He wants a "Muscleman" Brave Gown because he loves the ocean and his dad has tattoos. My new favorite quote is "Rough seas make the best sailors."-Ghandi. Isn't that the darn truth! Please send a prayer out to his family. They are good people.
 
So when I keep posting about Give-A-Gowns and ways to help, don't let it drive you nuts, please just know that it is because Brave Gowns goes for weeks without getting one gown sponsored and I get story after story like this and behind every story, there's an adorable child, with a family that is scared beyond belief! If Brave Gowns give them a little hope, then a Brave Gown they shall get!
 
2,200 gowns to go for the month of July. Will you be one of the 2,200 people to sponsor a gown to be part of this journey?

or if you want to make a donation for a write-off please go to www.happyditto.org.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
Summer
Summer Germann
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Give-A-Gown Today and Recieve A Trucker Hat!

Give-A-Gown Today and Recieve A Trucker Hat!

Have you been wanting to sponsor a Give-A-Gown, but hadn't had a chance yet? Well everyone that sponsors a Give-A-Gown to a child currently battling a terminal illness will receive a Brave Gown Trucker Hat, so today is the perfect day to sponsor a gown! Make a child feel like a SUPERHERO today! www.bravegowns.com

Summer Germann
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GIVE THE GIFT OF STRENGTH TO A CHILD!

GIVE THE GIFT OF STRENGTH TO A CHILD!

Remind a child how strong they are by gifting them with the "MUSCLEMAN" Brave Gown! Brave Gowns are the perfect gift for a child battling an illness or going in for a surgery! Not only do Brave Gowns bring a smile to a child's face, they are t-shirt like soft, have dual IV sleeve access and full back coverage! Once a child puts a Brave Gown on, it's hard to get them out of it! 

As Paul Y. Song, MD Radiation Oncologist/ Husband of Lisa Ling wrote:

"At a time when many kids' bodies, physical appearance, and self esteem are ravaged by cancer and their associated treatment, Brave Gowns provides a wonderful source of comfort, joy, and much needed fun. It also makes access to wounds and IV ports much easier for healthcare providers. Above all, it is a very thoughtful solution for a very vulnerable patient population." 

Purchase a gown today or sponsor a gown on our waiting list for a child currently at ST JUDE at www.bravegowns.com

Summer Germann
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