Julie had a "Bucket List Wish" to live long enough to see our book become a Canadian best-seller. Unfortunately that didn't happen but we are continuing to move toward that goal.

So many people have been asking if we're close to fulfilling that wish and the answer is both "Yes" and "No" ... officially we have to sell 5000 books through a recognized venue such as Coles, Indigo, or Chapters who track the sales - we have done about 300+ books through that avenue but most of our sales happen the old-fashioned grass-roots method - word of mouth, speaking events, and other sales locations and most importantly, fundraisers. We haven't sat down to 'do the math' but it looks like we're about half way to reaching the 'unofficial' best-seller goal - about 2500 books sold so far!

We are hoping to get picked up by Indigo Books (Coles and Chapters are included under their umbrella)but until then we've decided to go for an 'unofficial' best seller and sell 5000 copies with your help.

One of our most successful fundraising efforts came about as a team effort between the Valley Women's Network and The New Page Human Services Society. The Valley Women’s Network (VWN), www.valleywomensnetwork.com Chilliwack Branch, created the 'Choosing to Smile Book Fund' in order to spread the message of hope and inspiration to others facing adversity. The money donated to this fund is used to purchase copies of 'Choosing to Smile' which are then given free of charge to patients who are undergoing treatments for cancer at various cancer centres in BC. In return, for every book purchased by the VWN, Choosing to Smile donates $5 back to the VWN organization to support their 'Families In Need' program. So far, close to $2000 has been raised to purchase books through this fundraiser.

Donations can be made at any branch of the Envision Credit Union to the:
'Choosing to Smile Book Fund'
account #1455864
Contact Joyce Esau: jbesau@shaw.ca -- 604-858-2409