Halloween Spooktacular!

Thanks so much to everyone who attended the Gotz Strength Spooktacular last Friday! We had a great turn out and the foundation along with the National SCI Foundation made over $1700!

We had a great DJ there to entertain along with "Otis the Cop" who won the costume contest, keg beer, and some great snacks donated by many of our guests! Thank you to Kristine, Kathy (Kristine's mom), Crystal, Zack, Rob, and Amanda who helped set up/donate decorations, and clean up. A real special thank you to Amanda who coordinated the event and Evite lists, and to Crystal's parents (AKA Jesus and the nun) for manning the door!

I have a photo of Mike's costume to the right and anyone who got great shots of the guests (I've seen some on Facebook!) and would like to add them to the slideshow.com link to this blog, please do!

-Kim

Poker Run

Last Saturday the Poker Run was held to benefit the Foundation. The turnout wasn't great due to the weather, but we would like to thank Courtney Miles and his buddy for showing up and braving the rain for the ride! Mike and few friends and family gathered at the Middlebrook Inn afterwards to grab a bite and hang out!

We would like to extebnd a special thanks to Summer and her dad who gave a generous sponsorship from Subway for the event. We look forward to holding this event again, and hopefully Mother Nature will cooperate!

-Kim

What's new...

Mike and dad bought a cabin about a month ago in West Virginia. They have been up for a visit almost every weekend to relax, and start fixing it up to meet Mike's needs and with supplies. They are both very happy about habving a place on the river to enjoy!
Mike's health has been great! The wound on his back is pretty much completely healed and although there is another small one on the back of his ankle, we feel we have this under control. The visiting nurse still comes to check on him once a month as well. He is gaining weight-he thinks too much!- and has more energy to ride over to the shopping center across the street for his sugar free Red Bulls and shopping trips to Home Depot.
A couple of weeks ago, he caught his first fish and completed staining a cabinet for the garage for him to keep his stuff in.
In February, NRH takes an annual ski trip for SCI patients and their physical therapists and he plans to attend! He continues to go to Orioles games with dad, including one this Sunday vs. the Red Sox (we all know who he's cheering for!).

Next Saturday is the first annual Gotz Strength for Spinal Cord Injury Motorcycle Poker Run! we're excited that Mike will be able to come out and enjoy the people, bikes, and beer and we hope it will be a great turnout!

Laslty, Mike is happy that our little sister Erin has chosen a career path! We're so excited that she just enrolled in the Dental Assistant Training School and will become certified to help fix your teeth in 11 weeks. Go Booger!!

-Kim

2nd Annual Green Turtle Event

The second annual Green Turtle Day for Mike was a huge success and a fantastic time! Mike had a blast seeing all of his friends. The dunk tank was a lot of fun too! The Booty Shaking Contest was derailed a bit, but still a lot of laughs. The band was great again too!

A special thanks to Crystal and Kim for all the prep work and running around, to those who manned the Gotz Strength gear table and 50/50 and the dunk tank too.

The Michael Gotzens Foundation for Spinal Cord Injuries made $2174 before adding in the Green Turtle 10% contribution!!! We'll update with that amount later. We will also get some pictures posted as soon as we gather them all up from everybody.

Mike's awesome day-See right for pic!!

Yesterday, Mike went to the Orioles vs. Red Sox game with his aunt Nancy, Uncle Ray, mom and Kent. Not only did the Red Sox win a very high scoring game, but Mike caught a foul ball!!!! They were in the right field area seats, and a foul ball was coming their way-As everyone else ducked for cover, Uncle Ray dove (literally) for it and knocked it right into Mike's lap!! We're trying to get the footage from MASN TV and if we can, we hope to post it! Way to go Mike and Ray!

Also, please notice the new event posting to the right. The Poker Run is on the books! Spread the word and for all you bikers, sign up today!!

-Kim

First Annual Gotz Ball Tournament

This event held at Morris Park in gaithersburg raised about $1700.00 for the Mike Gotzens Foundation! all 6 teams had a great time and despite the heat, played extremely well! A very special thanks to Gary Slaght, and Gary and Mike Foreman who organized and ran the event! Also, thanks to Crystal, Taylor, Lori Slaght and all of the spectators who came to support their team and the fundraiser! Team "Average Joes" came out on top, but Joe and Gary's Team (Mike's old team) J.A. Slaght Contractors, came in a close second! We look forward to next year's tournament being even bigger!

-Kim

The Softball Toounament is HERE !!

The first annual "Gotzball" softball tournament is finally here. Saturday, July 11 will be the one day event. The first game is at 9:00 AM and games will continue throughout the day.

Come on out and watch the fun and support the Michael Gotzens Foundation for Spinal Cord Injuries.