From Our Home to Yours
By "Sunshine" Shelly Monahan-Cain

This month, Steve and I want to tell you about a young woman that we have had the privilege of knowing for many years. It is the story of a woman who has made us cry, pray, and realize just how remarkable and strong she is in every sense of the word. She is, without a doubt, AMAZING!

Many of you remember a 12 year old girl named Alli in the Mead School District that had a sledding accident 8 years ago, leaving her with a C4/5 spinal cord injury and paralyzed from the neck down. When things looked bleak, Alli became alliSTRONG. Many of you might remember seeing all the reader boards around town with local businesses like McDonalds restaurants, encouraging Alli to stay strong.

Alli did just that. Now she is 20 years old, a junior at Gonzaga University studying Engineering Management, and she is able to go to school completely independently. She even has her driver’s license, and is able to drive with hand controls. She has fought SO hard these past years. With a true blessing from God and with painful, intense physical therapy she has regained a lot of mobility in her upper body including her arms and core. She has even seen some movement in her legs! She NEVER gave up, NEVER!

Alli being Alli through it all, never thought of herself....and in typical Alli form in 2018 formed the Annual #alliSTRONG Stuffed Animal Drive for Sacred Heart’s Pediatric Intensive Care Unit where she herself spent more than two months in the hospital, 13 days in the PICU.

Here is part of what she says about her stay there: Alli remembers…

“I remember the reaction from pretty much every nurse when they entered my room for the first time, shocked at all of the support I so clearly had. It made me realize how lucky I was and that not every child in a situation like mine was able to look around their room and see that people were rooting for them. Knowing first hand how much of an impact something as small as a stuffed animal or knowing someone is thinking about you can have during tough times, it has made me feel so strongly that every child should be able to experience that. Even if it brightens their day for only a second, it’s worth it. The hospital, especially the PICU, is a hard place to be. There’s a lot of lows and I think it’s important to create as many highs as possible.”

~ Sincerely,  Alli

Quite the statement from this young lady. In 2018 she collected 75 stuffed animals. In 2019, 496 animals, in 2020 523 animals, and last year 709!!!! This is where YOU come in. We want to set a goal to more than double last year’s number and collect 1500 BRAND NEW stuffed animals for the children. Steve and I are asking you as we enter this Autumn season, a true season of Thanksgiving, to make a donation to Alli’s Stuffed Animal project.

Want to Donate?
You can contact her via venmo: @allimckernan,  email her at alligmckernan@gmail.com or you can call or text her directly at 509-220-1584. Alli and her family will hand deliver the stuffed animals to the children at the hospital at the end of October. You can also drop off your donation at our Windermere North office in Spokane at 9017 N. Country Homes Boulevard.

You know all of us have been through something, being tested in both our physical and mental strength. Steve and I feel we can come out of those situations better people, and Alli certainly is an amazing example of that.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and hopefully you’ll be able to make a donation. Steve and I are so blessed to have you in our lives and SO blessed to show us the true meaning of faith through someone like Alli.

Have an incredible October!