We Ride the PMC to Honor Survivors and Angels

Each year, we ride the Pan Mass Challenge to "honor" people who have battled cancer. Some have won the battles, some are winning, and some have passed away. Reading the stories from friends, and their friends, about loved ones is a highlight that brings us closer together. I hope you'll add your friends, family, and loved ones to our growing story by commenting to this post, and by joining our PMC PaceLine, a cool fundraising tool in which you can create a rider who'll join my "PaceLine." Please click to make a donation to our effort to fund cancer-curing research at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.

To start, let me introduce a few people we'll think of as we ride this year. If you'd like to read (a lot) about some very special people we focused on last year, please visit the Team Avanti site.

Ernest H. Bluman was my grandfather who died too early for me to know him well. Because I lost him at the age of 6, I really never knew any of my grandparents. It makes me sad to have missed that and angry at cancer to have taken my last grandparent. And I'm sad and angry that my kids never got the chance to know my Mom. On the other hand, I also have a great appreciation that we live just 3 miles from my kids' wonderful, generous, funny maternal grandparents, and that they got to spend as much time with my dad as they did before he passed away. ....from John Marchiony

for Bootsie and Charlie Carothers, as well as my aunt, Sally Windle (died of breast cancer at 43), my aunt, Dicker Ryder (ovarian), and several friends who've survived breast cancer: Elissa Wolf-Tinsman, Susan Gallo, Meg Hausman.... from Lalla Carothers

Debi Finnerty was an angel on earth, brightening the day of children, their families, her friends and colleagues. The world was brighter every day that she shined her happy smile and loving heart. She battled valiantly, but lost in 2006.
…from John Marchiony

Jennifer Kay: After a valiant two-year battle with renal cancer, Jennifer Kay, Dartmouth '86, succumbed to the disease on May 1, 2006. In 2001, Jennifer decided that she wanted to use her math abilities to help young, underprivileged women. Without any training as a teacher, Jennifer joined the math faculty at Holy Family Academy in Bayonne, New Jersey and later at St. Aloysius High School, in Jersey City, both inner-city Catholic schools. One former student attended Dartmouth and credits Jennifer with teaching her the skills and fostering the drive needed to be successful at Dartmouth. Jennifer was truly devoted to the goal of promoting and improving the study of math and science by young women....from John Marchiony & Gary Greene

for Eve Marchiony, my Mom, and her best friend Helga Strowbridge. They were quite a pair, playful and just throughout their lives. ....from John Marchiony
They -- Eve and Helga -- both color my life with their acts of generosity and humor.
...from Judy Siegel
Ride for your Mom! I think your rid noble and therapeutic. Good luck and carry your heart high!
...from Jane McKee Douglas

Ev May was one of the greatest friends I have ever had. In a very real way, he saved my life....from Rob Rodgers

for Patrick Rafter, who confronted a cancerous brain tumor ten years ago. He lost half his hair to the chemo, shaved the rest, survived having his skull opened up and yet lost none of his humor and grace, I assume, 'cause he's damn funny and thoroughly genuine.....from John Marchiony

Thanks for sharing! Please add my mom, Nancy Woodbury and four classmates who are surviving and I hope thriving - Sue Garrat, Lois Burrill, Judith Sallet and Emmy Marks. Three of them were part of Junior year Abroad in Geneva. ...from Betsy Rowe