It's been a long time since Michele Pulaski has enjoyed a night out. 

Michele's days are busier than most. She takes care of daughter, Sarah, who has been battling cerebral palsy and epilepsy and is enrolled in our Casey Cares programs. In addition to providing for Sarah and her twin brother, Joshua, and younger sister Emma, Michele works and takes care of her husband, who suffers from muscular dystrophy. 

Thanks to our longtime partners at Live! Casino + Hotel, Casey Cares was able to make special memories for Michele this past weekend as she and two other Casey Cares moms and their friends were treated to a night out with VIP tickets to see Richard Marx at Concert for a Cause! 

“This is just an amazing opportunity for me,” said Michele, noting that it has been years since she has taken time out for herself to go out, let alone to a concert. “I feel like a schoolgirl. I am a child of the ‘80s – I guess I never got out of the ‘80s. It will be so much fun to relive a little bit of my teenage years and for a few moments to forget about everything else.”

The evening lived up to its billing, and to top it off, Michele got to meet her teenage idol! 

(Michele with Richard Marx) 

"For someone who doesn’t get to go out much, I made it count last night when I did!" Michele wrote us. "I spent the night reliving my 80’s teenage years with my hubby! Thank you to the amazing Casey Cares and Live! Casino + Hotel for giving us tickets to see Richard Marx! I showed Richard Marx a picture of our girl and thanked him for raising money for such a great organization. He asked about her and was so kind! I do miss his 80’s mullet but, he’s still pretty easy on the eyes! His voice is still amazing!" 

(Michele with Reada Kessler of WTOP and Gina Crash of Today's 101.9 at Concert for a Cause)

All of us at Casey Cares are so glad we could give this mom a well-deserved break and a fun night out! Thanks Richard Marx for continuing to give back to the community, and thanks Live! Casino + Hotel for your continued support of our programs at Casey Cares. 

BTW, did we mention we pulled the winning ticket for our annual raffle at the concert? Ticket No. 318 was our lucky winner of $10K! Thanks everyone who purchased a raffle ticket to make it possible for us to make little moments and lasting memories for many more families with critically ill kids! Didn't purchase a raffle ticket? You can always support Casey Cares programs by donating today! 

(Casey Cares founder and executive director Casey Baynes, Richard Marx and Casey Cares deputy associate director Erin Ritter)