The Family Christmas Letter aka The Gregory Weiner Foundation

Dear Family and Friends,

It is with heavy hearts that we open this year’s update. Our son/brother Gregory passed away on December 20th from injuries sustained in a skateboarding accident earlier that week. The accident occurred on the campus of Virginia Tech where Greg was finishing his first semester in the Engineering School. He was transported to a local hospital in Blacksburg and then flown to the Neuro Trauma ICU at Roanoke Memorial Hospital. From the beginning, he received the finest medical care. The outpouring of support, encouragement and prayer from family, friends and strangers was overwhelming, and a source of strength for us all. Greg fought the good fight, but in the end the damage to his brain was just too severe and he never regained consciousness. His family (less Cassandra) was at his side at the end. We plan to hold a modest memorial/remembrance ceremony in Virginia Beach sometime after the New Year. By choice Greg was an organ donor and on Sunday doctors prepared his organs for transplant. We were informed four lives have already been saved after receiving his heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. Medical research and potentially hundreds of lives will benefit from his tissue, nerve, bone and cell donations. We are so proud of his gift of life. Greg was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. Whether he considered it unnecessary, inconvenient or was just exhibiting the invincibility of an 18 year old will never be known. We have decided his legacy must include increasing helmet safety awareness, and are establishing a foundation to do just that. Should you care to donate to this cause, contributions may be sent to:
The Gregory Weiner Foundation
c/o Navy Federal Credit Union
1952 Laskin Road
Suite 513
Virginia Beach, VA 23454

Cassandra is well into her second year as a Peace Corps Volunteer, teaching English in Mongolia. She especially enjoys working with her younger students, as they show a greater willingness to learn and cooperate. Her tour of duty wraps up later next summer and she is undecided on what to do next…a benefit of youth! Meredith is entering her final semester at the University of Virginia (Economics/Math). She is President of the women’s water polo club, lifeguards at the aquatic center, interns in the Athletic Department and volunteers with the Boys/Girls Club. Graduating amidst a faltering economy will make pursuing a career very challenging, but we are confident she will do well. Erin is a sophomore at Virginia Tech (Interdisciplinary Studies). She also plays water polo and is team Treasurer. She has applied for Study Abroad next year, and should find out in January if she has been accepted. Bullet turned 8 last month and is a bundle of energy and affection. Alena works at JCPenney and Dana at COMNAVSURFLANT in Norfolk, VA. The big news is our move to Italy this coming summer where Dana will assume command of the Supply Center in Sigonella (Sicily).

We hope 2008 was a wonderful year for you and yours, and that 2009 will bring additional joy and happiness. Again, we want to thank everyone for your support during our time of grief. Take care and keep in touch.

The Weiner Family
Dana, Alena, Cassandra
Meredith & Erin

Goodbye Gregory

Gregory Raymond Weiner
4.16.90 - 12.20.08

Learn more about him here and here.

You will never be truly gone as you live on in all of us.

Prayers for Gregory

Hello to all who may read this.

If you don't know, I have an 18year old little brother, who is the absolute love of my life. His name is Gregory. I was 5 when I found out my Mom was going to have a boy. I was so excited and asked if he could be my baby, envisioning in my little 5 year old brain how cool it would be to have some cute little baby call me "Mama!" My mother agreed thinking it was just some childish fancy. But when he was born and I asked for "my baby" she of course set me straight. I was furious and didn't talk to my mom for a long time (in 5year old time...so who knows how long it actually was! LOL!). And for all who know me, and my infinate babbling prowesses, you will realize just how serious of an issue this was for my 5 year old self. I got over it, and became the best oldest sister I knew how to be. When travelling the 2 of us were always "moving buddies" and despite the 5 year age difference he became one of my best friends. We both love kung fu movies, acting like fools in public, techno music, screamo music, parfait (though I never met anybody that didn't like a parfait). Anyone who has been in my company for more than a few hours, will usually end up hearing about him. My Mongolians can never remember my sisters names (Meredith and Erin), but they some how always know Gregory. Like I said I love the kid something fierce.

Last Monday he was in a severe skateboarding accident, suffered major brain trauma, and is in the hospital. He has yet to regain consciousness. While he doesn't seem to be getting any worse, he also doesn't seem to be getting any better. Though I hear that his physical appearance has improved some. Doctors say there is still hope, but to prepare for the worst.

Even if you have never met him, I beg of you to please pray to whatever God, Goddess, animal, plant, mineral, or anything else you may worship, speak to, or believe in to help him get through this and wake up.

I will be leaving Mongolia on Monday, December 22 to fly to America and be with him. (I will be transfering flights in Beijing this time instead of Seoul. My first time in "China" if the airport counts. I have a 7 hour layover, it will be interesting I think.) My parents have let him know that I'm coming, and on Tuesday morning my sisters and I will drive to meet up with my parents so we can all be with him especially for Christmas.

I want to thank everyone who has been praying for him, and sending out good thoughts. I'm very hopeful. He is young and strong and I know he can make it if given the opportunity. I especially want to thank those people in Mongolia who have helped me keep my sanity, given me a shoulder to cry on, and supported me in the most trying days of my life. Julie, Sarah, Shuree, and Ganaa...you are all the loves of my life, I don't know what I would do without you. Not that I don't love the rest of you, you see I'm just bad with names.

Again, please please please send good thoughts twards Roanoke, Virgina for a one amazing Gregory Raymond Weiner. Thank you, and if I've free time I will update about all the goings on in Mongolia, and most importantly, about Gregory.

please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live please let him live

What are the spoons doing in the Pancake Drawer?

A number of the higher-up in command American Soldiers came back to my soum the other day, and man alive was it ever like Christmas (and not just because Lt. Simmons was decked out as Father Christmas!). They not only came to check on the work they did this summer, but they brought along a ton of books, art, and school supplies for the kids both from the Hawaii and Alaskan folks back home! They may not be contiguous but that doesn't make them any less excellent. Even more amazing was seeing the book Hopscotch, the Tiny Bunny, a book that my 1st grade teacher gave to me, and will always be one of my favorites. Now I get to give it to my students! The students are already getting excited about writing the thank you cards with their new supplies! Yey giving!

We are also preparing for the New Year's celebration (which is a combination of America's Christmas and New Years). Its cute to hear groups of children walking around our snow covered Christmas card town singing Jingle Bells. Not so cute is having to hear the worlds stupidest song ever (thanks Germany) played over and over and over for hours on end as I'm trying to type up lesson plans, and the kids still don't know the words. :::bangs head on table:::

That's about it for now. I don't have anything in my life worth talking about really at the moment. Except to apologize to Mother Nature for my love of coal and its glorious warming prowesses (is that a word?).

Oh yeah now I remember. Americans have a lot of stuff. I occupy the same amount of space that a family of 4 does in Mongolia. Albiet, my ger is much more sparsly filled than theirs is, but one must remember the boxes of stuff I have in storage in America. I find myself asking...why? What is all of it for? It obviously isn't necessary for survival. I don't miss it (well except for my bed, I miss that something fierce sometimes...my books too...and movies...okay so I do miss a lot of my stuff if I give myself the time to think about it being not here). But, its kinda nice knowing that I could fit all I needed in my firetruck red L.L.Bean backpack and mom-worthy purse. Knowing that I don't have to worry about my ger burning down because there is nothing in it that I would lement over (considering I had my packed bag...if it happened now...:::gasp::: GURGI! I would cry).

Also if one were to look at my journal they would think I have some sort of disorder. And I quote..."I absolutly love my 4th grade babies! they are the joys of my life and a pleasure to teach. As for my older kids and the postmaster, I just what to [sic] deck them. I hate that [sic] piece of [sic] song baby!!! What would I do if my family died? Could I go back? How would I survive? If only one person died, I could get over that...but to lose everyone at once o_O that would indeed break me. I LOVE CRAYONS!"

The family's Thanksgiving card is right. I am special.

I'm no good a.k.a. Mr. Ed is delish

My dear devoted readers, I'm sure you are feeling most neglected as it has been over a month since my last update, but I have to admit that I'm lazy and a bit boring of late so besides the fact that I'm perpetually on the verge of freezing to death in my sleep and have yet another respiratory infection, nothing much is new.

However, as its snowing right now and I'm inside my friends nice warm apartment, having just showered and eaten a delicious dinner I shall provide an interesting tale from the past month.

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Having awoken one particularly chilly morning with a painfully full bladder, I ignored the cold and dashed to the outhouse to relieve myself. I made note of the density of the steam from my pee and the fact that the combined poo of the various inhabitants and visitors to our compound was starting to form a poolagmite (or would it be a poolagtite, I always for get which is which O_o). Winter was finally upon us. One my way back to my windowless ger, thus meaning that the inside temp is only slightly warmer than the outside temp, I noticed that there was a new addition to our compound...a beautiful brick red horse tethered to the fence. He must have arrived some time in the night. How lovely. Then I dressed in record time and was quickly on my way to my heated school. I taught an uneventful day of classes and then when home...

Now because the horse was such a new addition and because I was still half asleep/cold as all get up, its no surprise that I didn't realize it was missing. That was until I walked into my "family's" ger. Come here Cassandra. Come help me clean the horse intestines so we can finish cooking them. It's only logical that the innards of a horse will be much larger than those of a sheep. However, the actualization of this is a bit disturbing. Yet I didn't hesitate to squat down beside my "mom" and hold open one end of the former horse's large intestine so it could be cleaned, filled with blood, tied, and cooked. I don't know what this says about me.

That night around 7pm when I wandered out in the near pitch dark to get more wood to make a fire in a futile attempt to warm my ger, not only was I attacked by Puppy, but I found that when reaching blindly for chopped wood chunks, I actually encountered chopped horse leg chunks. Not to mention jaw chunks. This only freaked me out for a nano second. Again, not quite sure what this says about me.

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That is all for now. I will try to be better in updating this month. Maybe make it my New Year's Resolution. Now for sleep!

p.s. horse meat is sooooo delish you should really try