The Great Shoot Around With The Montgomery County Police

May 24th was a great day for Justin's Quest. Justin had the honor and pleasure to meet with about 25 Montgomery County Police officers to shoot hoops at BCC High School gym in Bethesda MD. Audrey and I were so humbled that these brave men and women who lay down their lives every day to protect the citizens took the time out of their busy schedule to honor Justin and shoot hoops. There were TV cameras present and we were interviewed. Again, I am still in awe at the sight of my son making a difference to raise awareness and find a cure for brain tumors. I still have pinch myself that it is my son who has the brain tumor. The officers were so great with Justin and made him feel special. Asst. Chief of Police Jerman and Commander Hamill presented Justin with a beautiful certificate of appreciation. Justin was so happy to receive this at he was so excited about the recognition of his hard work. As I do these interviews, it does not get any easier to talk about my son's diagnosis as I still get choked up at these events and the out pouring of support and kind words of encouragement. It is an awesome sight for any parent to be a part of and I use the word awesome because there are so many emotions going through your mind. But most of all We are just so proud of Justin and what he is doing. Justin and the officers did a shoot around and played knockout. Overall 165 shots were made today. We thanked the officers so much for what they have done and some of them told us that Justin touched them dearly and emotionally. We want to thank all those who attended and helped organize the event. We want to give a special thanks to Jay Rosenberg for helping organize this event, he has been so great in helping to spearhead Justin's Quest. I want to also personally thank Officer Cobian who was instrumental in organizing the event. He was fantastic with Justin and even gave him a "tour" of his police cruiser. Another successful event and many more to come.

Robert Frost Middle School

I received a phone call from Dr. Jones, the principal from Robert Frost Middle School that he wanted to have the annual student /Faculty basketball game benefit Justin's Quest. This is the school that Justin attends and he is in his first year there. We were so honored and humbled by this most generous gesture. The event took place on Tuesday May 18th. They had Justin and a faculty member do an announcement over the loud speaker on May 12th about the event. Justin was reading over his speech to me the night before. Again, I still cannot believe that our son has such poise to tell the world that he has a brain tumor. The speech went over well and the school sold out the 350 tickets. The gym was at capacity. The Washington Redskins were so generous to have representing the organization at this event Ken Harvey, former pro bowl linebacker and Gary Clark, former pro bowl wider receiver and surprise guest Greivis Vasquez, University of MD basketball superstar. Again ,what an event. The games started and at halftime Dr. Jones gave a speech about Justin. This was the first time my father and father in law were in town to witness such an awesome scene. It was emotional to watch my father with tears streaming down his face listen intently to Dr. Jones describe his grandson with an inoperable brain tumor being so strong. It was a chance for him to see first hand what I have been talking about regarding these emotional events. To watch the student body applaud so loud for Justin when he, Greivis, Ken Harvey, Gary Clark and Dr. Jones made 19 shots at the 5 minute halftime was awesome. Justin was all smiles. Ken and Gary presented Justin with a signed Santana Moss jersey and Greivis most generously gave Justin his red watch. Justin wears it proudly. The school was going to donate an additional $100 if Greivis made a half court shot and guess what, The man swished it. Overall the school raised over $1000 for Justin's Quest. We are so grateful to the Frost community for taking an interest in Justin's Plight, so a big thank you goes to all who made this event happen.

Cavs Lose To The Celtics

Justin and the family were all geared up to watch game 6 of the big series. Justin was wearing all his LeBron and Cavs gear and was very fired up. The whole family was shooting baskets downstairs before and during the game. It was a close game but in the end his team the Cavs lost. Justin was devastated by the loss. Overall we shot 150 baskets.

Mother's Day Weekend

It was a good weekend for Justin having a dent made in his Quest. His brothers and him shot most of their free time this weekend and they made 500 shots. They shot outside and in the basement. Sunday was a little limited in time as it was Mom's day.

DC Race For Hope Weekend

This is the 1 year anniversary of our first Race for Hope. Last year we entered just 2 weeks after Justin was diagnosed and quite frankly we still were in shock over him having a brain tumor. Wow time flies I cannot believe 1 year has past that fast. Justin started the weekend by going to soccer practice and he had a sleep over with 4 boys Friday night. They all shot hoops for most of the night and had alot of fun. They shot 250 baskets. Saturday Justin and his brothers shot hoops and made 50 shots. Sunday Morning we left at 7 am to go to the Race for Hope. Justin put on his yellow survivor shirt. It blows me away to see my son wearing that yellow shirt which denotes that he is a survivor, thank God he is a survivor, but that he even has a brain tumor is still shocking. It is like wearing the scarlet A but in a positive sense because he is with us. Unfortunately, the event has families who have lost loved ones and that just breaks our hearts. We took 2 cars to the event as Jordan, Justin and Jacob all had soccer games at 1pm so we had to divide and conquer to get them there. I drove with Justin and he was very tired and a little apprehensive. The race went well ,we had alot of team members and want to thank all of the people who joined Justin's team. We are grateful for the support. It was a very hot day. The event brings out so many emotions, as it is so hard to describe because our family is sad to see Justin go through this but our whole family is very sad for all the families effected by this terrible disease. Justin and his brothers got a picture with David Cook and Greivis Vasquez who came out for support. That was so nice. Justin walked with his friends and Audrey and I and Joey jogged about half the race and walked the rest. It was packed. To make it more emotional for Audrey and I, we are taking Justin to Sloan Kettering Memorial Cancer Center tomorrow because Justin has to be seen by their top endocrinologist because he is not growing. Justin saw our endo. doc this Wednesday and she was very concerned about his lack of growth and the brain tumor. Sloan was great in getting us this appointment so quickly. I just told Justin at 3:30pm Sunday as not to stress him out this weekend. We will leave at 3am Monday to be in New York. I told Justin and he is nervous, but I told him everything will be OK. His 3 brothers are so special in supporting him as they are hanging with him to comfort him. We are taking the family out for their favorite restaurant, Rio Grande and Carvels for ice cream, Justin's request. He is excited to get his usual hotdog in New York from the corner vendor. Overall a very humbling weekend that will bring additional challenges for our family after our Sloan visit tomorrow. Thanks again for our family and friends who came out to the walk and support. We are very appreciative.