X-Message-Number: 22758 From: Date: Sun, 2 Nov 2003 05:49:53 EST Subject: Urgent request from Suspended Animation, Inc. Content-Language: en Dear Cryoneters: I don't know why this has not been posted before. Just late last week I heard from James Clement what is happening in South Florida. This affects all of us in the cryonics community VERY directly. I have not secured permission from David Shumaker to reprint this letter, but I think he would want this posted in this forum. Pasting follows: Dear Cryonics Enthusiast, As the president of Suspended Animation, Inc. I am asking you to help us win a very important battle, a battle critical to cryonics in Florida as well as the entire cryonics community. As you may know, we are a new cryonics company located in Boca Raton, FL. We began operations last year with funding support from the Life Extension Foundation. We have been instrumental in the cryosuspension of three Floridians and a similar number of cryonicists elsewhere in the country. Our primary goal is to perform research that will enhance cryonics through whole body vitrification and vastly reduced previtrification ischemic damage. But, we also provide you the first response capability that may make the difference between a good resuscitation prognosis and oblivion. SA is the only cryonics organization who plans to perform substantive research to improve both control of ischemia and reduction of cryosuspension damage. 95% of our efforts are directed to research to improve cryonics technology. SA is the only company now providing professional Standby Based Transport to ensure you get immediate professional care from the moment of pronouncement. Lastly, we are the only organization proposing to provide whole body vitrification. We welcome you to look over our website www.suspended.org and view how we are making a substantial impact on the industry and how we can be of service to Florida cryonicists. We are in a crisis at this moment brought on by the pending refusal of Boca Raton to grant us occupancy and building permits and by the State Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers who demand that we become a licensed mortuary. Unless we can reverse the Boca Raton licensing problem, an entire two year s worth of effort will be wasted as we are forced out of our facility and must seek another place from which to operate, if we can. As I am sure you know, no cryonics organization has a lot of money to waste and this will come close to killing the entire operation. If we do not win in our battle with the State over becoming a licensed mortuary, cryonics will for all practical purposes be prohibited in Florida yes I mean it forbidden. Mortuaries are forbidden to treat patients except in the mortuary, thus all of the bedside anti-ischemia treatment vital to ensuring brain tissue viability is prohibited. This is only one roadblock created by the State s licensing requirement; there are many others. We desperately need your help in two areas. First, there is a Boca Raton Planning and Zoning meeting on Thursday Nov 6 at 6:00 PM, in the Boca Raton City Hall that will debate our occupancy and building permits. The auditorium has 300 seats and to the extent they are filled with cryonicists, those in power can hear a voice for approving our permits. Furthermore, individuals can sign up to be heard for five minutes. If the seats are filled with animal rights activists and those who hate anything new or unknown, then only their voices will be heard as they have been so far. We really need you. Unless there is a groundswell of support, they are going to recommend to City Council that our permits be denied purely because we are a cryonics organization. In addition to your help at the meeting we would greatly appreciate it if you would send the attached letter (or one similar to it) to the Boca Raton City Council at the address below to encourage them to vote for us when the measure comes up there later this year. These guys all respond to the voters, and those who voice their preference are the only ones heard Boca Raton City Council 201 West Palmetto Park Road Boca Raton, Florida 33432 Will you help? Please visit the following links below and send emails regarding the importance of the research that SA is conducting and how it is needed by the growing cryonics community in southern Florida. Send an email to the Mayor of Boca Raton Steven Abrams from his web page http://www.ci.boca-raton.fl.us/city/Mayor.cfm Send an email to the Deputy Mayor of Boca Raton Susan Whelchel from her web page http://www.ci.boca-raton.fl.us/city/Council1.cfm Send an email to Counsel Member Susan Haynie from her web page http://www.ci.boca-raton.fl.us/city/Council4.cfm Send an email to Counsel Member David Freudenberg from his web page http://www.ci.boca-raton.fl.us/city/Council3.cfm Send an email to Counsel Member Bill Hager from his web page http://www.ci.boca-raton.fl.us/city/Council2.cfm Send an email to City Manager Leif Ahnell from his web page http://www.ci.boca-raton.fl.us/city/message.cfm At the following link www.suspended.org/counselletter.htm you will find the letter attached to this document. Please send all your friends to our website and ask them to copy, paste and send the letter also. Have them send emails, make phone calls, anything that ensures SA is not stopped in furthering the very important research being done in cryonics. This is vitally important for all cryonics members independent of your membership organization. We are fighting for our company and the right for cryonics to exist in Florida. This is a matter of life and death for us and you. Sincerely, David Shumaker Content-Type: text/html; charset="UTF-8" [ AUTOMATICALLY SKIPPING HTML ENCODING! ] Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=22758