'From Chemo to Surgery, She Has Been Calm and Positive.'
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OFF TO THE RACES CARROO THOUSANDS PARTY, RAISE MONEY FOR CHARITY BREAKS THROUGH FOR RUTGERS PAGE A5 SPORTS, C1 OCTOBER 20, 2013 $2.00 AIMEE’S STORY ACARING COMMUNITY People ‘From chemo to surgery, make the she has been difference Oct. 26 is the day organizers of local calm and positive.’ projects need help By Paul C. Grzella @PaulGrzellamycj For Maria Strada and Pete Clark, Saturday is all about be- ginnings. Strada, the executive direc- tor of Middle Earth, hopes the Make A Difference Day basket- ball game in Bound Brook her organization is hosting that af- ternoon will introduce the broader community to her youth-services organization. “I hope people come out and support the charities that we are trying to raise money for,” Strada said. “I also hope that they see how much effort the kids have put into the different activities going on that day, and see that they really care about our community. “This is also a great opportu- nity for people to learn about what we do. We’ve been around for 30 years, but I’m always sur- prised that there are a lot of people who don’t know about all of the services we provide.” The Make A Difference Day project being coordinated by Clark at North Brunswick High School, where he is principal, involves refurbishing a butter- Breast cancer patient Aimee Parani rests in a “quiet room” prior to double mastectomy and breast reconstruction surgery on Oct. 10 at fly garden that was severely Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick. JASON TOWLEN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER damaged by superstorm Sandy and since has fallen into further disrepair. “I want people to understand Surgery helps close book on breast cancer chapter that this is something anyone can do,” Clark said. “People can help us and get ideas about an By Cheryl Makin :: @Cheryl Makin event that they can do next year. I want projects to be hap- Third in a series pening all over the township, so that it becomes a real move- NEW BRUNSWICK — The day that Aimee ment.” Parani thought would never get here ar- Both of these projects are rived in a rainy haze. It was Oct. 10, the day being funded by $5,000 grants of her bilateral mastectomy and recon- from the Gannett Foundation. structive surgery. They are among the dozens of “For so long, we were just taking it one projects happening locally and day at a time — through the chemo, then the thousands occurring nationally delivery. When we first got the date for the as part of the USA Weekend- surgery after a followup visit from the che- sponsored Make A Difference mo, we were given a date the week before Day. my sister’s wedding,” she said. “We knew The projects happening Sat- that wasn’t good. The next date was three urday can be done alone or by weeks later. That was much better. But, friends, family, co-workers or when we heard the date, it just seemed so strangers who see a need and far away. ” Chris Parani (left) waits with his mother-in-law, Millie Fraley, want together to do something Dr. Deborah Toppmeyer of Rutgers Can- and sister-in-law Kim Pope, while his wife, Aimee, undergoes to make life better for their cer Institute of New Jersey first saw Parani surgery. JASON TOWLEN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER neighbors. with a “new breast mass and 12 weeks preg- For more than 21 years, nant” in February. ONLINE EXCLUSIVE Make A Difference Day has “At the time, she had been seen in Florida been powered by hundreds of and came up here. We did chemo up front to In connection with the series “Breast cancer, a baby and the BRCA supporting newspapers and shrink the tumor. It had also spread to one gene: Aimee’s story,” see MyCentralJersey.com story on Aimee long-standing partner Points of lymph node that was palpable,” Toppmeyer Parani’s recovery at home and care after surgery. Plus, a video Light to mobilize millions of said. “We did the chemo first as opposed to exclusive: An inside look at Point Pleasant native Aimee Parani's people across the U.S. for a sin- the surgery first. We wouldn’t be doing any- battle with breast cancer — http://mycj.co/15SC7ON gle day to help change the com- thing differently in terms of her prognosis, munities in which they live. but her being pregnant The organizers of these two local projects are working with See AIMEE, PageA2 dozens of similar community- See DAY, Page A4 COLOR IN BLACK & WHITE INDEX LOTTERIES ...... A2 OBITUARIES .A12 @ISSUE ............ F1 OPINION .......... F3 PR initiatives not working; we need ADVICE ......... B11 SPORTS ............. C1 (%4#4'2..&-&/ CLASSIFIED .... D1 TV .................... B13 4#0" ("5= 3!:/9." 79.+1$ to crack down on, confront bullies !!!!!!!! "!#"$)( *&!'$) *+!% Ireally tried this time. I want- player who is projected as a top ed to hold it in, but I can’t. selection in the 2014 NFL Draft, Today, I again am going to type Clowney a couple of weeks back +%'.% about bullying. took himself out of the lineup In previous episodes, you have before a game and was thrown read me complaining about what I under the bus by his head coach (,*#!$ &"#!-) call useless public relations initia- Steve Spurrier and widely as- tives about bullying. What’s sailed by the news media and by wrong with them? Well, first, fans on message boards galore. these initiatives would have you Clowney said he was injured. believe that only children get definition of what a “man” is sup- Many from his group of critics bullied. Wrong. Second, they posed to be, you will face even assume that he just is trying to would have you believe that sim- more bullying — in the form of protect himself from getting hurt ply telling someone you are being ridicule and such. before he signs a multimillion- bullied is going to result in you Do you want an example? The dollar National Football League getting assistance. Wrong. Third, most recent glaring case I can contract. Of course you have to $-,!,'$!*()+ %&"'-# we live in a society in which if site is the media backlash against hear all the pundits talking about +++0)(-%"$(#,.-(-&*&+&#&/.0'"! you are male and do not “man University of South Carolina “real men” play hurt for the good %*% 3&) *- 4,(&+/ !) "($.'#210/ 45 up,” “act strong,” or live up to football defensive end Jadeveon +)."" '%#-$&% (%,%"#* '/!#% 45!/Mon-Fri.'0-10am-6pm,(0&/ +,1" )#Sat2"10am-5pm.$*1./ 3*-!/Closed+,1"Sundays)%2" some ridiculous TV-generated Clowney. An outstanding football See COOKE, Page A4 Page A2 Sunday, Oct. 20, 2013 K1 Home News Tribune MyCentralJersey.com WEATHER COMFORTINDICATORS ALMANAC AREA FIVE-DAYFORECAST New Brunswick Readings Sunburn Index: 4 Garden Forecast: Values are for24hours ending 7a5p.m..m. Air Quality: Good Sunny. Highs in the yesterday. Today Heat Index: lower 60s. West winds Information provided by Today Tomorrow Tuesday Wednesday Thursday 8a.m. 52° 10 to 15 mph. Rutgers Meteorology Department, noon 56° Cook College. Temperatures: 4p.m. 61° High.............................................. 70 Low............................................... 39 Average......................................... 55 Normal High .................................. 64 TIDES Normal low.................................... 47 HIGH TIDES LOW TIDES Normalaverage ............................. 53 A.M. P. M. A.M. P. M. High this month............................. At Sandy Hook Low this month.............................. Today 9:14 9:40 3:07 3:46 Precipitation: Tomorrow 9:55 10:25 3:48 4:28 KeyportatRaritan Bay Yesterday.................................... 0.00" Month-to-date ............................ 0.56" Mostly sunny Mostly sunny Partly cloudy Partly cloudy Partly cloudy Today 9:10 9:36 3:13 3:52 Tomorrow Year-to-date................................ 37.51" 9:51 10:21 3:53 4:34 Normal year-to-date .................... Records: High temp. ......................... 82 (1945) SUN AND MOON Low temp. ............................ 30 (1948) Last New First Full Precipitation ...................... Quarter Quarter High temp. today ................ 80 (1969) Low temp. today................... 31 (1974) 63/40 65/47 67/41 59/38 58/36 Precip today...................... Oct 26 Nov 3 Nov 10 Nov 17 Degree Days: Sunset today ........................................................... 6:10 p.m. Cooling degree days......................... 0 West winds 10 to 15 knots with gusts up to 25 knots. Waves around 2ft. Sunrise tomorrow..................................................... 7:15 a.m. Month-to-date ............................. 7 Moonrise today........................................................ 7:16 p.m. Season-to-date............................ 609 MARINE FORECAST Moonset today......................................................... 8:50 a.m. This date last year........................ Normalseasontodate LOTTERIES AIMEE SATURDAY, OCT. 19 NEW JERSEY Continued from Page A1 NEW JERSEY Midday Pick-3: 002 Midday Pick-3: 342 Straight: $297.50 changed what we opted to Straight: $259.50 Box: $99; Pair: $29.50 do when.” Box: $43 Midday Pick-4: 5410 The chemotherapy Pair: $25.50 Straight: $2,605; Box: $108.50 shrunk the tumor consid- Midday Pick-4: 4611 Evening Pick-3: 227 erably, Toppmeyer said. Straight: $2,733.50 Straight: $206; Box: $68.50 Box: $227.50 Pair: $20.50 “At first, it was big,” Evening Pick-3: 647 Evening Pick-4: 8797 the 39-year-old Parani Straight: $263.50 Straight: $2,422; Box: $201.50 said. “But after the first Box: $43.50 Jersey Cash 5: 4, 21, 22, 23, chemo treatment, it was Pair: $26 31 not there. You could not Evening Pick-4: 9425 5of 5 pays $72,813; 4 of 5 feel it.” Straight: $2,712 pays $608; 3 of 5 pays $11 Parani went on to fin- Box: $113 NEW YORK ish five months of chemo- Jersey Cash 5: 8, 9, 10, 19, 25 Midday Daily: 800 therapy treatments on 5of 5 pays $63,639 Lucky Sum: 8 4of 5 pays $243 July 22 and delivered her Midday WinFour: 1532 3of 5 pays $7 healthy girl, Paige Virgi- Lucky Sum: 11 na Parani, on Aug.