Two sisters from Iowa are completing a list of New Year’s resolutions that have helped raise money for research into a disorder that claimed the life of a friend. Radio Iowa’s Pat Curtis reports:
Last year at this time, Courtnee Carstens of Des Moines and her sister Bree, who lives in Chicago, decided to complete one resolution per week for a year. If they failed to complete a resolution, they would donate $10 to the Preeclampsia Foundation.
Preeclampsia is a condition that affects around 5% of all pregnancies. The disorder claimed the life of Courtnee and Bree’s friend, Shelly Bridgewater, in January 2005. Courtnee describes herself and her sister as “introverted people,” so some of the resolutions were difficult to carry out. “We did things that really, really pushed us out of our comfort zones and then also raised awareness for something that has affected us and friends of ours,” Carstens said.
Courtnee completed one of her final resolutions last week by singing karaoke in a bar. Her sister did the same in Chicago. It was something they had never done before – and don’t plan to do again. “It was horrifying, we’re both bad singers,” Carstens said. The sisters have documented their progress through a blog which has gathered a loyal following of readers.
Carstens says they’ve received emails from friends and strangers who have learned about Preeclampsia symptoms through the blog site. “It’s really gratifying to get emails like that,” Carstens said. The sisters grew up in Walcott in eastern Iowa. Bridgewater was just 25-years-old at the time of her death. Her daughter, who was born seven weeks premature, is now five-years-old and living with her father in Iowa Falls. Bridgewater was an elementary school teacher in Iowa Falls.
See their blog here: fifty2resolutions.wordpress.com