You've been on my mind...
This is a PSA with a long overdue apology
I have been debating my next post for a while now (as you can tell). It is not writer’s block. It is writer’s intention.
My intention has been and remains sharing stories from the bedside that illuminate what matters most. A path forward when the light is dim. Reassurance that you can forge your own way through. That you are not alone.
Yet, the truth is, I have been feeling alone.
Substack is a JOY for my fingers to express my heart.
I LOVE writing on this platform built for writing. It works with my mind. My meanderings. My yearnings.
Yet, my yearnings for a peaceful place to play became sharply interrupted at the end of last year. And I have hesitated. Stepped back. Paused in silence.
That was not fair to you.
I am very sorry and hope you will forgive me, even if you do not fully understand my “why.”
Why?
PSA1 Part 1: Substack is not a perfect company
I know no such thing exists. Yet, when they were called out by an investigative reporter to address some inconsistencies with policies regarding allowable and prohibited content on the platform, they did not behave with the degree of integrity I would have hoped. That lead me to contemplate leaving Substack.
As I have explored alternate platforms, none have compelled me to switch.
What I have decided, instead, is to stop supporting Substack financially by removing the option for paid subscriptions.
PSA Part 2: A new way to support my work that is a WIN-WIN-WIN2
I was minding my own business, just doing the work I love, caring for people living with life-altering illness, when unexpectedly, I received an email from work telling me a grateful family had just made a charitable gift to support my research at UCSF. This is the first time this has ever happened for me and at first I honestly thought it was a “test” sent by our IT department to check our ability to discriminate known senders and not to click on potentially phishy links.
Turns out, it was real and I now have a research fund in my name, “Dawn Gross Research Fund” at UCSF that allows me to create projects and pay for materials, time and effort to do the work I LOVE.
What this means for you? Every gift you make to support my writing and my research is 100% tax-deductible for YOU! 3
My invitation: please see below, (or for a more artistic version, head to my website HERE) and follow the 4 simple steps outlined to make a donation. Online minimum is $25. That will give you full access to the online version of Heart Sounds, which I will send directly to your email. If you donate $30 or more, I will gift you a hard copy of the book as soon as it is released!
Online:
Make a gift online using a major credit card:
1. Visit: www.makeagift.ucsf.edu
2. Select the blue button marked “Direct your gift to a specific area”.
3. Click the “other” button and type in “Dawn Gross Research Fund” and then select “continue” at the bottom of the page.
4. Fill out the remaining portion of the form and click “Give Now” to submit!
****Please forward your donation receipt to: Dawn@drasyouwish.com with a note letting me know how you’d like your book(s) inscribed and where you would like them sent.****
If you don’t like online payments, checks are also welcome. Instructions are below and also on the bottom of THIS page.
By Check:
Please make checks payable to UCSF Foundation. Please include “Dawn Gross Research Fund” on the memo line.
Mail checks to:
UCSF Foundation
P.O. Box 45339
San Francisco, CA 94145-0339
PSA Part 3: Ask: The Time is Now
TEDx Sonoma County
Event details:
Saturday March 2 from 1:30-5:30
Sonoma Country Day School
4400 Day School Pl, Santa Rosa, CA 95403
https://www.tedxsonomacounty.com
Livestream or come in-person. The choice is yours…!
I speak 4th out of 12 so guesstimate 2:30p PT
Thank you for reading. Thank you for being curious. Thank you for your support.
More to come…. I promise. And you know how I feel about promises.4
Public Service Announcement
My favorite way to play!
For those who have already become paid subscribers via Substack, THANK YOU! If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation to the “Dawn Gross Research Fund” at UCSF, please send me a message at Dawn@drasyouwish.com and I will be happy to arrange a refund for your Substack payments.
