3 Years Gone...

Three years ago today my dear Uncle Arie, (Z'L') passed away after his struggle with Pancreatic Cancer. He lived about a year and a half after the diagnosis and ensuing Whipple procedure. That's more than twice as long as most, and we were grateful for each day.

His legacy is huge. He supported many charities and had a policy that anyone who brings themself to ask for help should not be turned away empty handed. Perhaps they weren't completely satisfied, but they always got something for their trouble.

Arie taught me so much. My only Uncle, he taught me how to put on Tefilin as my Bar Mitzvah approached. As an adult, he taught me about business, especially not to waste and how to negotiate respectfully. He encouraged and supported me as I learned how to manage our family business. He once looked at a clock I had made, which demonstrated the stages of building a home. He told me that before I had that clock made there hadn't been such a thing in the world, and now there was. That simple support meant a lot.

This is why Pioneers For A Cure exists. A tribute to a wonderful person who appreciated his family very much. Before the Pioneers project, there might not have been a place for these old songs to raise money for cancer charities selected by each artist. There might not have been iPhone Apps to raise money for cancer charities. Now there are, pending Apple's approval.

Rest well Arie. We're still hard at work, as I sit now at the very desk he used so well for so long.

2009 A Year For Pioneers For A Cure

A Happy New Year wish to all! May 2009 bring real progress in the treatment and prevention of cancer.
This is the year we've been preparing for, and we're getting ready for our launch. Over 2 dozen old Israeli pioneer songs have already been recorded, with about 16 other artists having committed to record. More than half the material is mastered, and many tracks have begun to appear on MySpace and FaceBook.
Last week Bob Clearmountain and Keith Olsen sat with Pioneer Producer Greg Wall in Santa Monica to mix our "all in" anthem, Am Yisroel Chai. It sounds great and will be out there soon.
More about that here. http://pioneerproducer.blogspot.com/2008/12/hangin-with-homeboyz.html

Our first iPhone / iPod Touch App, FightCancer, is submitted to Apple, and we anxiously await it's appearance on the iTunes App Store. This App is a free full preview of two of our songs, one by New York Voices and the other by Karen Rosen, herself a cancer survivor. Here's a clip from Karen's song "Yelad Kat."