Last year the friends and family of Eli, the little boy in this picture, established the not-for-profit Read and Remember Eli Foundation. Our first annual event, the 2007 Read and Remember Eli Trivia Night Fundraiser and Book Drive was a huge success and our family was incredibly touched by the generosity and support of our community. With the help of local businesses, friends, and family, we raised $10,000 to support the Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood (SUDC) Program and we distributed over 830 books for toddlers and preschool children at local charities and organizations. We hope that you will consider supporting our 2008 event and the missions of Eli's Foundation: to provide support to the SUDC Program by hosting a local fundraiser annually and to pay tribute to a little boy who loved storytime by providing local charities and organizations with new books for toddlers and preschool children.

The SUDC Program, established in 2001 through the work of two other SUDC mothers, seeks to raise awareness, further research and provide support and advocacy on behalf of families affected by the sudden death of a child. It is part of the CJ Foundation for SIDS, which has been instrumental in reducing the occurrence of SIDS deaths through research and awareness programs. While much progress has been made in understanding and preventing SIDS, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, little is known about SUDC, Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood. Like most parents, we had no idea that children over 12 months of age could still be susceptible to sudden death. After Eli's death on March 6, 2007 at 21 months of age, our family desperately sought answers to why a little boy who was so strong and healthy could have died suddenly in his sleep. In finding the SUDC Program, I learned that our family was not alone in our grief or in the search for answers. We were facing the same tragedy that happens to about 1 in 100,000 children over the age of 12 months every year. It is very rare, but a cause no less deserving of support from concerned parents and friends. The SUDC Program is funded by the CJ Foundation and through the local fundraisers held by the friends and families of the children who have died. If we are to someday find the cause of Eli's death, and the knowledge to prevent other sudden deaths in children, we will need your help to make our community's fundraiser a success again this year.

There are several ways that you can contribute to Eli's Foundation. You can become a sponsor of our upcoming event, reserve a trivia night table or make a monetary or book donation to Eli's Foundation. This year's event, the second annual Read and Remember Eli Foundation Trivia Night Fundraiser and Book Drive, will take place on October 25, 2008 at the St. Paul Church Picnic Grounds Hall. If you are able to contribute, please complete the Sponsor/Contribute Form and return it to us by September 12 for sponsors and October 3, 2008 for table reservations.

Thank you for your time and support.

Sincerely,

Michelle Graczyk
Eli's Mom