From our friend Tiffany Wells from Adcock’s Nursery:

The daughter of our friend and colleague, Joe Neal, was diagnosed with a serious liver disorder (alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency) in March of this year.  Marie, sixteen, needs a liver transplant as soon as possible.  This is a very expensive process that will cost $115,000.  The benefit for Marie Neal, “Summer’s End Picnic”, held on August 29 at the North Carolina State University JC Raulston Arboretum was a huge sucess!  More than 200 people attended in support of the Neal family and raised close to a total of $13,000 for Marie Neal.

Skip Warrrick of Scott Trees and Ron Gelvin of the Carolinas Irrigation Association were prepared to feed 200 people based on RSVP’s, but by 7:30 pm, people were eating out of to-go trays and had to eat with no utensils!  Spot, Micheal Proctor’s Rock & Roll Band, and Constant Change, a bluegrass band, provided great music to entertain the large crowd.  The silent auction was full of donations not only from the Green Industry, but also from the Neals’ church family members.  The silent auction itself raised over $3700.

The $1000 raffle was also a huge success that generated around $2500-$3000.  A local nurseryman bought over 1000 raffle tickets and put Joe Neal’s name on it, making him the big winner of the $1000 prize.  The Neal family is getting very close to their goal of $115,000.  However, they still very much need your support!

The Neal family asked for assistance from the Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA)., a national charity based in Bloomington, Indiana dedicated to organizing and guiding communities in raising funds for children who need organ transplants. The North Carolina Green Industry Council is partnering with COTA to raise funds in Maries’ honor.

It is our wish to help Marie in any way that we can. There are several ways you can help.

First, donate directly to COTA through this web site, http://cotaformarien.com. You will find a photo, a brief story about Marie, and a link to donate online. Be sure to note that the donation is in honor of Marie Neal.

Another option is to send a check to COTA , 2501 West COTA Drive, Bloomington, IN 47403.  Be sure to write in the notes line “on behalf of Marie Neal.”

We encourage you to come to the aid of our friend, Joe, to help his daughter fight this disease. Please forward this information to your friends in the industry who would also want to help Marie. If you have any questions, please contact Tiffany Wells (tiffany@adcocksnursery.com, 919-622-2533), Bev Gelvin (bevgelvin@embarqmail.com, 919-669-5442) or me, Jill Hoffman (jillhoffman@hoffmannursery.com, 919-479-6620).