Saturday, July 23, 2011

BLESSINGS FROM SPAIN / THE ADENTURES OF JAMES CAFFERTY



This is an article written about my Dad, James Cafferty, on behalf of the Yanke transport company via Janet Cafferty.

The Yanke family who were following my blog of my father's journey took it upon themselves to collect over $3000.00 for Prostate Cancer research.
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The article reads as follows:

At age 77, most people would envision a rather quiet, sedate lifestyle that involved a little gardening, reading and long evenings with a good book.

Not so for James Cafferty. In May, 2010, he embarked on a campaign to raise funds for the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. His commitment was such that he vowed to walk 500 miles across Spain to generate aware3ness and donations to his cause. He began this monumental journey in October 2010.

Yanke PTO, Janet Cafferty, was very proud of the effort her father was making and decided to join him and her mother for the final leg of his six-week journey. She and her mother met Mr. Cafferty in November to show there support and to walk the final miles of the Camino with him. Weeks of solitude and hundreds of miles of walking had not diminished his enthusiasm, and he left them behind to cross the finish line on his own.

A cathedral stood at the end of their route. It was traditional for visitors to place the names of those who were known to be suffering or troubled on a special card and light a candle for each of those listed on the cards. The cards and candles constituted a 'prayer' or wish for their lives to become better. Before joining her parents in Spain, Jan called the office to ask for the names of any co-workers who were ill or having difficulties. She wanted to place a card in the cathedral to help those in need. Jan decided, however, that it would be inappropriate to discuss individuals.

Upon arriving at the cathedral, Jan wrote a name on one of the special cards, her father blessed the candle himself and the three members of the Cafferty group placed the card. The name on the card was "The Yanke family."