My Fundraising Page

Aloha!

I hope everyone can come to the 9th Annual Luau for Leukemia at the Limerick Junction on June 18. (9th Annual! Where has the time gone?) Thanks again to Gordon Kerr and his staff at the Limerick. Without their efforts, these luaus would not be possible.

Nine days after the Luau, I will be in Seattle to run the inaugural Rock 'n' Roll - Seattle Marathon with Team in Training. My previous visits to Seattle have been spent in and around Sea-Tac International Airport, so I am looking forward to seeing some of the city - even the 26.2 miles I will see on foot.

My long-time Team in Training coach and friend Tommy Owens views Seattle from a different perspective. Twenty years ago his daughter Leslie, having been diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, went to Seattle with her parents for a bone marrow transplant. Tommy was the best donor match, so it was his marrow that was used in the procedure.

Sadly, Leslie lost her battle with leukemia in Seattle. Tommy has not been back there since. But on June 27, Tommy and his other daughter, Gretchen, will run the Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon to honor Leslie's memory.

Running a marathon can sometimes be tough. But no matter how tough it gets, there is always some comfort in knowing that the finish line is exactly 26 miles 385 yards from the start line. But for leukemia patients and their families the finish line - if it exists at all - is a vague notion that lies somewhere up ahead.

Great progress has been made in recent years in the fight against blood related cancers, thanks in large part to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and, by extension, to everyone who has supported the LLS. For example, the drug Gleevec (whose development was funded by donations to Team in Training) provides an alternative to bone marrow transplants for many leukemia patients. But there is still much work to be done before we reach the day when leukemia patients know exactly where their finish line is and are secure in the knowledge that that they will reach it.

Thank you all for your continued support. Godspeed Tommy and Gretchen - I'll see you at the finish line!

Les