metro >> mentshes of the month VILLA HEALTHCARE EXCEPTIONAL CARE. UNEXPECTED LUXURY. Setting* The Pace PASSIONATE SERVICE. Young fundraisers set the bar high for their Relay for Life team effort. I Stacy Gittleman Contributing Writer T Effective July 1, 2015, Villa Healthcare is excited to inform you that we have assumed ownership of the Bortz Healthcare Facilities throughout Michigan. Villa Healthcare is changing the landscape of post-hospital care by transforming long-term care facilities into modern, post-acute care settings known for clinical sophistication, quality medical care, unexpected luxury, and exceptional levels of comfort and service. Our goal is to provide patients with the optimal pathway to restore heatlh vitality and independence to its highest level. Our clinical programs include short-term transitional care, rehabilitative care, specialized clinical programs, and long-term care. THE VILLA AT WEST BRANCH 445 S Valley Street, West Branch, MI 48661 Phone: 989-345-3600 THE VILLA AT ROSE CITY 517 W Page Street, Rose City, MI 48654 Phone: 989-685-2442 THE VILLA AT TRAVERSE POINT 2828 Concord Street, Traverse City, MI 49684 Phone: 231-941-1200 THE VILLA AT THE BAY 1500 Spring Street, Petoskey, MI 49770 Phone: 231-347-5500 THE VILLA AT GREEN LAKE ESTATES 6470 Alden Drive, Orchard Lake, MI 48324 Phone: 248-363-4121 villahc.com 2016680 hey may have called them- selves the Purple Monkeys, but when it came to raising money for this year's local Relay for Life for the American Cancer Society on June 6 at West Bloomfield High School, this team of rising sixth-grade girls from West Hills Middle School was not monkeying around. Through an active fundraising campaign, a lemonade stand and a cupcake-making competition, the team raised $18,184.63 — the fourth largest amount out of 43 local teams. In total, the West Bloomfield Relay For Life raised $239,079.26 for patient support, cancer prevention education and on- going research efforts in the fight against cancer. For this accomplishment, the local event received the organizatioris Pacesetter Award for a second year in a row for surpassing its fundraising goals. CALL US before throwing anything out. Many items can be re-purposed or recycled instead of trashed. Removal Services • • • • • Home/Estate Clean-Outs/Move-Outs Basements/Garages/Attics We Do All The Lifting And Loading Construction/Remodeling Debris Yard Rubbish/Branches/Firewood • No Job Too Big Or Too Small • Clean-Outs • Furniture/Appliance Removal starting at just Purple Monkeys team members Abby Chayet, Ave Usher, Alexa Shepherd and Rachel Thav Michael Kates – Owner (248) 521-8727 JUNK REMOVAL SERVICE www.allseasonsjunkremoval.com Mon - Fri: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. Sat & Sun: By Appt. Only weeliMINMAL • RESIDENTIAL! FREE ESTIMATES • SENIOR DISCOUNM. NOW OPEN! 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Leading the Purple Monkeys to their fundraising victory was Sammi Desmond, 10, a student at West Hills Middle School and Temple Israel's reli- gious school. Now in her second year heading up a Relay for Life team, she has inspired friends to join her in rais- ing money for cancer research by asking friends and family for donations over social media, a neighborhood lemonade The Purple Monkeys team at the recent Relay for Life event. stand and a cupcake competition mod- eled after the popular television show Cupcake Wars. Complete with celebrity judges, includ- ing one of the owners of Taste Love Cupcakes of Royal Oak and Andy Gignac, associate principal of West Hills Middle School, participants paid $20 to enter their recipe in the competition. After the winner was determined, the team sold the cupcakes at a school bake sale. The Purple Monkeys also received corporate sponsorships from local companies such as the Sample Warehouse, Usher Oil Company, American Allstars Athletic Center and others. One of Sammi's fellow Purple Monkeys was Alexa Shepherd, 11, of West Bloomfield, also a student at West Hills and Temple Israel. The biggest earner on the team, Shepherd solicited more than $4,000 by writing letters to friends and family and reaching out to others on social media. According to Melissa Shepherd, Alexis mother, the reason why so many of her daughter's peers are so passionate about raising money for cancer research is that they have all known someone who has or is battling cancer. One girl participat- ing on the team has a mother currently undergoing chemotherapy. Alexis grand- father Edward Kaplan of Farmington Hills is a six-year survivor of bladder cancer. Her great-uncle Harry Lebovitz of Farmington Hills died from cancer at age 70 — just two weeks before the June relay. "My father was diagnosed with cancer when Alexa was just 4 years old, so ever since she could remember, she has seen what her grandfather had to endure as he coped with living with cancer; said Shepherd, 38. "I think Alexa is so inspired to raise money because she sees that instead of her grandfather needing to go for a checkup every three months he now only needs to go once a year. She sees that this is possible thanks to all the advances in cancer treatment, and this happens when people even as young as she is raise money for research:" ❑