Press Release
Courage to Shine™ Team to tour the United States from July 24 through August 10 2014
July 25 2014 ABC Campout in Bristol, Indiana & August 1-3, 2014 at the California B.E.S.T Campout in South Lake Tahoe, Nevada with additional events to be added
Pittsburgh, PA, USA, June 17, 2014: Thomas Exler, vice-president of the Association for the Bladder Exstrophy Community and founder & chairman of Courage to Shine™ will be leading an international delegation of patient role models born with bladder or cloacal exstrophy across the United States.
The ABC Great Lakes Chapter Campout and the California B.E.S.T (Bladder Exstrophy Support Team) are two annual held weekend activity breaks designed for young people and their families living with being born with bladder exstrophy, cloacal exstrophy and epispadias.
The Courage to Shine™ Team members will be giving motivational presentations based on their own experiences, and will be participate with all activities, as well as interact with the families who attend the at either campouts in 2014.
This summer we will be joined by Kirsteen Lupton of near Glasgow, Scotland, UK. Kirsteen claim to flame came, after she sold her signature at a fundraiser the age of 10 for £20,000 ($33,508 USD)and then at the age of 13 she was the winner of the 2006 Pride of Britain Award for Fundraiser of the Year. www.prideofbritain.com/contentpages/winners/2006/kirsteen-lupton.aspx after raising over £750,000 ($1,256,623 USD)for Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, the hospital that saved her life. Kirsteen was born with bladder exstrophy and had her first surgery the day she was born at a hospital in Scotland. Today Kirsteen is 20 years-old and is becoming a well renounce motivational speaker, in addition to her fundraising capability. To read more about Kirsteen please go to: https://couragetoshineblog.wordpress.com/2014/06/16/kirsteen-lupton-pride-of-britain/
This will be the forth tour for Courage to Shine™
- In June of 2010 Courage to Shine™ team traveled to Australia and spoke at the BEECHAC International Conference in Sydney, New South Wales, and afterwards met with a family in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia. couragetoshineblog.wordpress.com/courage-to-shine-tours/
- In April/May of 2011 Courage to Shine™ traveled with a 5 member team to a program called Breakaway-Visits in Swadlincote, England, UK, as well as meet with leaders of many other UK based patient support organizations while in England. Additionally three members from Courage to Shine™ also continued the tour with a stopover in Iceland on the way home to the USA, to talk with members of two patient support organizations. couragetoshineblog.wordpress.com/courage-to-shine-tours/
- In November 2012 Courage to Shine™ traveled to Spain, and were guest speakers at the ASEXVE – (Asociación española de Extrofia Vesical, Cloacal y Epispadias – ASEXVE is the national Association in Spain for bladder, and cloacal exstrophy and epispadais) Conference that was held in Alvira, Spain. couragetoshineblog.wordpress.com/2012/12/03/courage-to-shine-tour-iii-spain-november-2012/
The Courage to Shine™ 2014 Team will include the following team members who are all currently living with a form bladder exstrophy
- Thomas Exler, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, President of Association for the Bladder Exstrophy Community (ABC) www.bladderexstrophy.com and Founder and Chairman of Courage to Shine™ www.courage-to-shine.org and you can read more about Thomas Exler at couragetoshineblog.wordpress.com/2012/03/10/thomas-exler-founder-chairman-of-courage-to-shine/
- Kirsteen Lupton, Glasgow, Scotland, UK, and 2006 Pride of Britain: Fundraiser of the Year www.prideofbritain.com/contentpages/winners/2006/kirsteen-lupton.aspx , Author of ‘The Pride of Britain: A Little Girls Bravery. A Family’s Strength’ www.amazon.com/Pride-Britain-Bravery-Familys-Strength-ebook/dp/B0031RSAJM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1397588244&sr=8-1&keywords=pride+of+Britain+Kirsteen+Lupton and read more about Kirsteen Lupton at
- Alice Ambrose RN, Allendale, Michigan, Author of sections of the book, ‘Living with Bladder Exstrophy,’ and if you would like to read more about Alice Ambrose go to couragetoshineblog.wordpress.com/2012/05/26/alice-ambrose-featured-as-a-uromed-hometown-hero/
- Misty Blue Foster LVN, San Mateo, California, USA, 2009 Ina Brudnick Award Recipient, (USA) West Regional of Great Comebacks www.greatcomebacks.com/us/stories/Foster_Misty-Blue.shtml and read more about Misty Blue Foster at www.mistybluefoster.com and couragetoshineblog.wordpress.com/2012/06/22/misty-blue-foster-courage-to-shine-role-model-of-the-month-for-june-2012/
Thomas Exler said, “Everyone on the Courage To Shine™ Team is very excited about attending these events, and it is amazing that all members of the team has either paid their own way to attend or found their own financing to afford to make the trip possible. This is very impressive these days, that there are still amazing individuals out there that go far out of their way to help others.”
Courage To Shine™ will be attending the following events this summer in 2014
- Saturday, July 26 2014 – Association for the Bladder Exstrophy Community (ABC) Great Lakes Chapter Campout (Note this event will be from Friday July 25 through Sunday July 27 2014, but will only be on site for one day)
- Friday, August 1 2014 – Sunday, August 4 2014 – California Bladder Exstrophy Support Team (California B.E.S.T), Campground by the Lake, South Lake Tahoe, CA
- Additional locations will be added:
Follow updated stories and photos of the Courage To Shine™ tour of the United States will be up online at Courage To Shine™ Facebook page: www.facebook.com/pages/COURAGE-TO-SHINE
Media Contacts: Thomas Exler Phone: 412-512-3139 or by email: texler@courage-to-shine.org
*Association for the Bladder Exstrophy Community (ABC) – The ABC is an international support network of individuals with bladder exstrophy (includes classic bladder exstrophy, cloacal exstrophy, and epispadias) local parent exstrophy support groups, and health care providers working with patients and families living with bladder exstrophy. For more information about the Association for the Bladder Exstrophy Community (ABC) please contact Thomas Exler by e-mail at tom@bladderexstrophy.comor by going to www.bladderexstrophy.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AssociationfortheBladderExstrophyCommunity
*Courage to Shine is the international awards program of the Association for the Bladder Exstrophy Community. It is a program that features adult patients who have grown up with some form of medical adversity, and have become successful in life. For more information about Courage to Shine™ program please contact Thomas Exler by e-mail at texler@courage-to-shine.org or by going to www.courage-to-shine.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/couragetoshine
* Association for the Bladder Exstrophy Community (ABC) Great Lakes Chapter is a chapter of the Association for the Bladder Exstrophy Community and host an annual campout in Bristol Indiana area each summer. For more information please call Alice Ambrose at or 616-406-7857 by email at bradnalice@charter.net
* California Bladder Exstrophy Support Team (California B.E.S.T) is an independent regional support group for individuals and families living with bladder exstrophy, cloacal exstrophy and epispadias. and annual hosts a meeting in the spring and an annual campout in August. For more information on California B.E.S.T. please contact Rebecca Hunter at rebecca_kylee@hotmail.com or Doug Krietz at californiabest@earthlink.net or by phone 650-325-5057
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Courage to Shine™ 