Monday, November 17, 2008

No mo' chemo

Usually at this time I am preparing for my next chemo. Not now. Hopefully never again. I am still feeling the normal aches and pains from chemo and the white blood cell shot.
I have a slow week planned except for Friday. I have been asked to be a part of a fundraiser rally for needy families at a High School in Illinois. I will travel there Friday and speak and sing for the students throughout the day. I have been given so much from friends, family and fans so I felt this was the least I could do to give back to others.
I will be on tour with Chapter 6 the first and second weekends in December. Not sure about the weekdays yet until I know when my radiation schedule will start.
I recently finished recording with the group for the album that we started before I was on idol. The album will be released on Dec 2nd and available on chapter6.com. I will post more about that later.
Finally, don't forget to buy David Cook's album that was just released. It is a great album with an incredible rock sound and very moving lyrics. Great production too.
I am gonna go have a nice chemo free week!

24 comments:

hiedi said...

Luke, CONGRATULATIONS!!!! I hope your week is completely uneventful, in the best way possible :) You are past this huge hurdle, but I will continue to pray for strength and guidance. Have fun on the road! You have been missed.
God Bless you and yours.

Jay said...

(Virtual bear hug!)

Great, great news!

The Saunders Family said...

We wait patiently for you to post and thankfully it was with good news. We are so happy for you and your family and we will continue to keep you in our prayers.

The Saunders Family

Anonymous said...

Congrats Luke! You did it, man!

I hope you have a nice quiet relaxing week, and that's a very cool thing you're doing for the families in Illinois.

And, yes, I'll definitely be adding to my CD collection soon! Looking forward to it.

- CK

idolette said...

So awesome to hear that the chemo's done, Luke! I was glad to see a new blog from you again, and it's always great when it's filled with good news. =]

Hope you have a great, chemo-free week and take it easy, relax, and enjoy the upcoming holiday season!

Best wishes and lots of love!

Anonymous said...

hooray! congratulations. hope you're feeling up to speed in no time with the added energy of knowing that there's no more chemo!

god bless!
nicole

Anonymous said...

applauding you here from chi town.

let us know if you're doing the 12/5 gig in Lake Forest, which looks like the closest you'll be to here, any time soon. that's a friday so don't know if you're including that in the term 'weekend', esp since the other performances that weekend are in Ohio.

would love to come up to see you and C6 if you're going to be there...

have a great charity show this week -- so thrilled you're up to that. praise the lord, no more chemo. happy dance happy dance.

yeah. already ordered 3 copies of Dave's CD. just drumming fingernails on the table waiting for yours. (i'm told patience is a virtue... working on that....)

julie, chicago

Mazakai said...

yay, no more chemo! you did it. :]

have fun singing at the high school - I'm sure the kids will love you. you seem to have a way of inspiring everyone.

so excited for the next Chapter 6 album! have a great Thanksgiving, I'm sure you'll have plenty to be thankful for. I'm thinking sushi turkey...

Unknown said...

Congrats on no more chemo Luke!!!!
I hope Chapter 6 comes to Cleveland when you get a chance to travel with them.

I genuinely hope and pray this long and painful journey you've been on these last 6 months is behind you for good!!!

Take Care,
Karen K.

Anonymous said...

YES.. I love your title.. NO MO CHEMO! You have been so strong over these last months of chemo! Spiritially,emotionally,physically!
As YOUR FAVORITE COUSIN, I am so very proud of you!
Love you dawg!
Mark Your Favorite Cousin Kohl

Unknown said...

Hi Luke, congrats on no more chemo!! I'm happy you're done with that and I'll pray you'll never have to deal with that again! I hope you enjoy your week and I ordered 2 of David's cds and waiting for them to come today. God bless.
Carry

Anonymous said...

CONGRATULATIONS Luke!!!

You rock! That is so awesome that you are giving back!

I hope you enjoy your slow week! And I hope you have fun tour with Chapter 6 for a bit!

I look forward to hearing more from you!

Best wishes,
Kaitlin

Anonymous said...

Luke, so glad to hear all the chemo treatments are over and i wish you much renewed strength, rest, and endurance as you continue on this path of your life.Glad to hear you will be singing with chapter6 and for the high school kids in Illinois on Friday. I am continually praying and thinking of you as you proceed on in your life. Much Love, Prayers, Success, Strength, Thoughts, go with you always in every aspect of your life. Love, twotwo

Anonymous said...

you

pecanpie said...

Hi Luke,

As a cancer survivor and an oncologist, I'd just like to say I think you are really superhuman (or perhaps super nuts;))for doing that charity gig right on the heels of your last chemo! Now that's what I call a true American Idol!

I am so thrilled for you for making it through the chemo and wish you a much easier time with the radiation. Just remember not to beat yourself up if you feel too tired to do some of your gigs while on radiation. Most people feel too tired to do much of anything, so if you feel that way too you are in good company, it's totally normal, and the fatigue WILL go away.

Can't wait to hear what you have in store for us when the whole ordeal is over with and you can get back to music full time! I'm expecting your first single "No mo chemo" to be a billboard chart-topper, but in the meantime, we can all chant "We are the Champions" in your honor subbing in "No mo chemo" for "we will rock you".

Peace out,

pecanpie

Anonymous said...

Dearest Luke, God is faithful! You and Lara remained so positive and spiritually strong through the hardest times and we are extremely proud and thankful. Thank you to the many who have offered prayers, support, encouragement,and uplifting blog comments! You will never know how much it has meant to the entire family. God is good,all the time. God is good!

Love, mom

Anonymous said...

Hey Luke - hope you don't mind me spreading this news ...

In the news section of www.chapter6.com it gives the announcement that the new album will be released on December 2!

In that announcement it also states that the album includes, "... four original songs and a pair of solo tracks by "American Idol" star, Luke Menard."

Fantastic! So glad we get to hear some of the solo stuff you've been working on.

:-)

-CK

Anonymous said...

They need to make a correction to that announcement. In the title of the release they say Dec 2, 2009!

"groovy vocals"? If this means a 60s-70s vibe, I'll like it!

Anne

Anonymous said...

Dear Luke,
What mom said.
Dad

kelly barton art + design said...

now that makes me really happy!
bye bye chemo! you did it!
and such an inspiration.

peace.
kelly and bryce

kelandtrigger said...

Great news, Luke, on several accounts! No more chemo, new C6 cd, *and* we will be traveling down to see you guys on the 7th in Cambridge. Has Christmas come early??? :-D


As always, love from the Ellerbrocks....

kelandtrigger said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kelly O'Dell Stanley said...

God is good! So glad chemo is behind you - my mom felt WONDERFUL once she got past that. And her experience with radiation was fine - very tired and shaky from the steroids, but otherwise OK. You're almost done!! And from that point on, you'll only feel better and better!

I've only met you once, but I've had the blessing of being encouraged by both Lara and your dad, and I just want to say how blessed you are to have such awesome, Godly support in your life. It shows in the things you write on here... I think that's why so many people check in daily to see if there's anything new from you (no pressure; just commenting!).

Can't wait to hear the new Chapter 6 album, and in particular your solo tracks (would they happen to be the ones you sang at the CHS thing a few months ago??). And I downloaded the new David Cook CD the moment it was released - love it. Love him, love his music, and love that if you consider him a good friend he must be an awesome guy, too!

Take care, and keep us posted.

Anonymous said...

hey, Luke, you be having a wonderful, peaceful, restful weekend, OK? All good things on the docket now... just be patient with yourself, all will be well.

diggin' dave's album, can't wait for yours... and you know, i dunno what was in his head, exactly, when he wrote "Permanent", because it entails shifting viewpoints.

But this part? For me? This is God talking...

"When all you know seems so far away and everything is temporary, rest your head.. I'm Permanent."

Yeah. He IS. Gloria in excelsis deo.

julie, chicago