Cancer SUCKS! By the time most of us reach adulthood and sometimes even before that, cancer has impacted our lives in one way or another through the diagnosis of a friend, family member, co-worker, a special child that we know or even ourselves. This month, while I'm riding to fight kid's cancer specifically, I'm also riding in hopes that my efforts and the efforts of my fellow riders will help in some way to renew awareness and hasten a cure for all cancers.

Fighting to support kid's cancer research is a cause near and dear to my heart. Cancer is something that impacted me early on when our family lost my younger cousin Charity to leukemia. We were just babies when she was diagnosed, and the illness took her away within a few years. Although we were young, I remember spending time with her (she was such a kind and sweet girl) and I have mementos, matching items from outings that our mothers took us on that will always be special to me. I've often wondered what it would have been like to have grown up with Charity. I remember seeing her mother (my first cousin), father, grandmother, my parents (her great aunt and uncle) and others struggling with her loss. It broke my heart to see their hurt. It deeply saddens me that she wasn't able to reach adulthood, or even childhood as she was taken from us so early.

I ride in hopes that with your support, we can help find a cure, so that other babies can live to adulthood and other families won't have to suffer the loss that my family did.

I'm also dedicating my rides this year to my family, friends and acquaintances whose lives have been touched by cancer. Unfortunately, there are too many to list here, but I hope that through all of our efforts, plugging away through participation in fundraising efforts that we will come to an affordable and reliable cure for all cancers soon.