CHARITY THROUGH ATHLETICS PMC and more by Carol Goodrow Drawing by David, California QUOTE "I don't know who learns more from these events (see Wildwood Challenge section below), the parents or the children. The parents are so proud that their kids have taken responsibility for raising money for less fortunate children, and, at the same time, the children are beaming with their accomplishment of both riding a bicycle and helping others. When you look at the 'snapshot' of such an event, the rewards and lessons are immediate and lasting."                                       - Billy Starr, PMC Founder/Executive Director PAN-MASSACHUSETTS CHALLENGE Drawing by Leah, Story by Carol In the fall, I run. It's the prettiest time of the year. I try to run every day. I run in the winter, too. Running is the best winter sport, for it naturally warms you up. I like to show nonrunners how thin my winter running jacket is to amaze them. In the spring, I run. This spring I ran in the rain. Running in the rain is totally refreshing. In the summer, I have more time so I walk, run, and I CYCLE. This year I'm riding more than usual for I'm in training for the Pan-Massachusetts Challenge (PMC), a fundraiser for cancer. The PMC raises money for the Jimmy Fund which benefits the Dana-Farber Institute. On August 2, I'm going to get up while it's dark, get my bike ready and head for the Sturbridge Host. By 6:00 a.m. I'll be on my way to Bourne, MA, that's 112 miles from the start. Then on August 3, I'll be up before dawn again for I'll be cycling another 80 or so miles to Provincetown, MA, to complete the ride, with thousands of other cyclists. I'm cycling for charity. That means that I'm raising money to give to a good cause to help others. This year I'm doing this ride in honor of my friend Mr. Francis Lucas. He is battling cancer and it's been a long battle. For a while we were running buddies. Sometimes I run the old route that I ran with Fran to remember our times on the road. The last time I did, I saw a swan taking off in flight. It's the first time I've ever seen a real swan in my whole life, and I'll never forget that beautiful sight. WILDWOOD CHALLENGE Kids raise money for charities, too. That's what the Wildwood Challenge is all about. It was founded by the Wilkinson family six years ago. At that time, their 7-year-old son wanted to ride the PMC, but of course he was too young (you need to be 15 years old to do the PMC) so they encouraged their son and some neighborhood kids to form a fundraising team, and then they hosted their own event. The event is now an annual fundraiser which this year made $12,000 for the PMC. And the event? It's a little-kids' PMC where they cycle up to 14 miles by going around and around the block. They ride 2-wheelers, with or without training wheels, and some arrive on that all time favorite: the Big Wheel. This year they rode in honor of Jonathan (a Pedal Pal). The PMC also has a Pedal Pal program, where you can ride for a young cancer patient. The children met Jonathan at the event. Drawing by Jacky, California RUNNING AND ATHLETICS Almost every sport has events in which you can use your love for athletics to raise money to help others. Every year I also run a Race for the Cure. There are Race for the Cures in every state in our country and many have a kids' event. My favorite in the one in Manchester, VT, where the kids run an XC event called the Steeple Chase. United States Track & Field (USATF) found that in 2002 runners raised $520 million dollars for charity. They named the Boston Marathon the 2002 USATF Charitable Race of the Year. RELAY FOR LIFE This young runner, participated with his club in a Relay for Life. It's a 24-hour team relay in which you run or walk laps. He collected money and pledges, then ran/walked for an hour for his leg of the relay. Click here for Vaughn's story. For Vaughn this is now an annual event. He tells, in his own words, what the Relay for Life meant to him. CREATIVE FUNDRAISING There are many ways to raise money for events. When you are doing a big event like this, you hope that your friends, families and colleagues, will offer you donations and pledges, but sometimes you need to be creative. This year with the help of our local health club, Sims Health and Racquet Club, under the guidance of our "Ultimate Cycling" instructor, Bob Mills, we did a 3-hour SPIN fundraiser.We brought the bikes upstairs, cranked up the music, and went for 3 hours straight. It was a fun way to get together to make money to help find a cure and better treatments for cancer. LINKS: Race for the Cure Kids' Event Carol's PMC page Pan-Massachusetts Challenge USATF Study Komen Race for the Cure Web site EDITOR'S NOTE Fran Lucas is a wonderful athlete and he's a huge Syracuse fan. With the help of Melanie Strong at Nike, and Dan Chace at Nassiff's (sports store in Willimantic, CT), I will be wearing a "Fran, the Orange-man Fan" singlet on the second day of the ride. Fran played baseball (always attended the opening day of the Yankees), was a runner, worked out at a local health club, played basketball, but he never learned to ride a bike, so he is mystified by the "challenge" I am undertaking. He's very interested in the Pan Mass and likes to hear all about it. The last time I visited with him he brought down an old Pan Mass shirt I had given him years ago. He remembered the cheers he'd get when he wore it when he was running. Now it has a real and significant meaning to him. Fran had his stem-cell transplant, that we hope will save his life, at the Dana-Farber Institute this past April. This year I'll be riding with my husband. He has done the PMC 7 times. This will be my second. He will zoom past me on the downhills, but he'll follow me on the uphills. It's that running all year, that keeps me in tip-top shape. Jolie, Olivia, and Clark cheer on a family member Privacy Policy of Kids Running