Blog

A Letter From Our President

Dear Friends:
My name is Patrick Togni, and I recently became President of the BounceBack Kids Board of Directors. I am honored to be a part of this wonderful organization, and to serve with such a talented and committed group of board members and staff. In connection with our February Newsletter, I have been asked to provide you with a little background on myself and to share some insights into where we see BounceBack Kids going in 2009 and beyond.

After a decade in Washington, DC, my wife Samantha Stockman and I moved to Durham in January 2007. Our decision to relocate here was easy. Like many of you, we wanted to be closer to family and to raise our children in a community with the right balance of opportunity and quality of life. A few months later, I was lucky enough to be introduced to BounceBack Kids by co-founder Dr. Henry Friedman.

By any measure, these are exciting times for BounceBack Kids. First and foremost, we are growing. In 2008, we saw a 175 percent increase in the number of referrals of new participants. This substantial rise is ongoing and shows that our outreach efforts across the region and state are working. In 2009, and as always, we will continue to pursue our mission by enriching the lives of as many children with serious medical conditions and their families as possible. I am particularly excited about the prospect of new participants and their families getting to know and creating lasting relationships with our current members, many of whom have been with us since the very beginning.

We are also thrilled with the feedback we’ve been getting about our new name and logo. We owe special thanks to Spark Creative Services (www.sparkcs.com), who worked with our board to develop the new logo. We are also excited about leveraging technology to continue growing our brand, and the BounceBack Kids pages on Facebook and YouTube are just the beginning of that important effort. Of course, the essence of our brand — and our mission — are the children we serve. They will remain at the center of everything we do in the future.

On behalf of our entire board and staff, I also want to thank the students and volunteers at the Duke-Carolina Student Basketball Marathon. As many of you know, BounceBack Kids has been the beneficiary of this annual fundraiser since its inception. This year’s game was the closest ever. UNC edged Duke 1,645 - 1,642 in a great game that lasted 24 hours. Many of our participants and their siblings capped off the marathon again this year with an excellent performance. We already cannot wait for next year’s kickoff dinner and marathon.

Finally, I would like to extend our deepest condolences on the passing of NC State women’s basketball coach Kay Yow. In addition to her legendary coaching career, Coach Yow also served on the BounceBack Kids Advisory Council. She will be missed.

I look forward to seeing you soon.

Patrick Togni
President, Board of Directors
BounceBack Kids