Send My Grandma to Italy

Always the coolest, Gram (second from left) parties with the girls at my sister's Bachelorette party in the spring of 2008.

Two months ago, only weeks before my little sister's wedding, my family received some devastating news: my grandma, only 72 years old, had stage 4 cancer of the lung, liver, lymph nodes, and spleen. It was a slow, dreadful diagnosis with each new test revealing worse news. The prescription? Immediate chemotherapy, with the hopes that it, along with other meds, would give her another year, and hopefully more.

My maternal grandma's real name is Raphael - but she's always gone by "Rae," and half of my name comes from hers (the other half is my other Grandma, Anne). She always been an amazing grandmother... fun, loving, and endlessly supportive, she's lived a simple life and never asked for much. Yet she's always dreamed big, and has always wanted to travel... especially to Italy, where her father was born before he immigrated to the states years ago.


Modeling her new curly blond wig, Gram is all smiles after seeing the launch of her new website. Her chemo treatments are going well, and she was feeling great for Thanksgiving.

When my Mom called me that cool September morning and told me the news about Gram, for some strange reason this little thought was the first thing that came to mind: We have to take grandma to Italy. I said it to my Mom on the phone, and she responded with, "I know. But how?"

I wouldn't let it go, and immediately started dreaming up a way to do so. I would build a website and tell her story. I would collect donations via PayPal. I would send it to everyone I know. I would ask my mother-in-law, Noreen, (a part-time travel agent) to keep her eyes peeled for deals to Rome and Tuscany. I would find a way!

After a month of writing, gathering and scanning photos, and living in front of the computer, I'm happy to announce that SendMyGrandmatoItaly.com is now live and functioning! Check it out, pass it on, spread the word, and please help me make my Gram's wish come true!