The Story of 65 Roses

Photo Courtesy of Shandi-lee via Flickr (CC)

All weekend long we will be selling red roses in support of the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

You can find us at midnight madness tonight in Caledon (between King and Mill St.), Pia's Bakery in Orangeville tomorrow and Zehrs in Bolton on Sunday.

Follow our twitter feed for more information on our progress. 

Roses certainly are pretty and do a good job of signifying our love and affection for that special someone. But what do they have to do with Cystic Fibrosis?

The following article comes to us from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, explaining how 65 Roses came to be a registered trademark.

"65 Roses" is what some children with cystic fibrosis (CF) call their disease because the words are much easier for them to pronounce.

Mary G. Weiss became a volunteer for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in 1965 after learning that her three little boys had CF. Her duty was to call every civic club, social and service organization seeking financial support for CF research. Mary's 4-year-old son, Richard, listened closely to his mother as she made each call.

The Weiss brothers, Richard, 5; Arthur, 7 and Anthony, 16 months.

After several calls, Richard came into the room and told his Mom, "I know what you are working for." Mary was dumbstruck because Richard did not know what she was doing, nor did he know that he had cystic fibrosis. With some trepidation, Mary asked, "What am I working for, Richard?" He answered, "You are working for 65 Roses." Mary was speechless. 

He could not see the tears running down Mary's cheeks as she stammered, "Yes Richard, I'm working for 65 Roses."

Since 1965, the term "65 Roses" has been used by children of all ages to describe their disease. But, making it easier to say does not make CF any easier to live with. The "65 Roses" story has captured the hearts and emotions of all who have heard it. The rose, appropriately the ancient symbol of love, has become a symbol of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

65 Roses^® is a registered trademark of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. 


Check out the original article here.