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Loving Dad with Cancer Writes Over 800 Napkin Notes to His Daughter

44-year-old Garth Callaghan has faced numerous difficulties in recent years, namely his diagnosis of cancer on three separate occasions over the course of two years. Having been diagnosed with prostate cancer once and kidney cancer twice, the devoted family man has been given an 8% chance of surviving beyond another five years. In fact, his doctor plainly stated, “You are going to die of this.”

With this daunting thought on his mind, Callaghan decided to think ahead for his family, particularly his daughter Emma. Since Emma was a little girl, the doting dad had packed a note with her lunches that offered some fatherly words of wisdom or just a quick message of encouragement. Looking ahead, he decided to continue writing daily notes for his now 14-year-old daughter as she finished middle school. Actually, he resolved to write 826 notes on napkins for her, one for everyday of class through her high school years.

The touching notes range from personal messages to inspiring quotes that encourage strength and growth. In fact, it has even inspired Emma to secretly leave her dad a few notes of her own.












Napkin Notes Dad website
Napkin Notes on Facebook
via [22 Words, Because I Said I Would]

Pinar

Pinar Noorata (she/her) is the Editorial Director at My Modern Met. She is a writer, editor, and content creator based in Brooklyn, New York. She earned her BA in Film and Media Studies from CUNY Hunter College. She has worked at major TV, film, and publishing companies as well as other independent media businesses. She also runs her own art & culture newsletter called The High Low. She first joined the My Modern Met team in 2011 as a Contributing Writer, pitching and publishing articles about a wide range of topics. Her expertise in visual media lends itself to in-depth analysis of varied art forms, including but not limited to painting, illustration, sculpture, installation, design, and photography. Pinar has a particular affinity for spotlighting up-and-coming artists, affording them a platform and offering a voice to lesser-heard individuals looking to break through, especially BIPOC creatives. She has helped multiple artists make a name for themselves and reach a wider audience over 10+ years as a writer and editor (both through long-form articles and short-form videos). When she isn’t writing, editing, or creating videos herself, Pinar enjoys watching films and TV, reading, crafting, drawing, frequenting museums and galleries, and volunteering at her local animal shelter.
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