Me - The Foodler

This is me, Victoria, and I like eating bagels... and baked goods in general. Actually I just love food. I don't much like running; swimming and cycling are things I like to do at a leisurely, almost senior pace. I am, therefore, decidedly unsure about the wisdom of committing myself to completing my first ever triathlon this summer - but I have. This summer I will run the Hyannis sprint triathlon to raise as much money as I can for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Yes, I will try to tri and this is why:

In the summer of 2008 I had the wonderful good fortune to meet Shari Dwoskin while visiting my then boyfriend, now husband, in Boston. Shari, one of the most gregarious and warm-hearted people I have ever met, impressed me on many levels and we have since become firm friends. That summer Shari was training for the Boston marathon to raise money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, having taken up running with Team in Training to celebrate her 10 years in remission from Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Shari’s amazing achievements and awesome strength inspired me to take up running which I have been doing ever since, albeit in a half hearted manner - until now.

Shari - Summer 2008

In the January of this year Shari’s sister Aliza was also diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The beautiful Aliza is newly married and was looking forward to starting a family; instead she is undergoing surgery and embarking on a course of chemotherapy. Shortly after Aliza’s diagnosis I passed an advertisement for Team in Training and it was settled: I will spending the next five months raising awareness of what The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society does, raising as much money as I can for them and working out like I have never worked out before.

Aliza and Shari Dwoskin

In Hyannis on June 11th I am going to swim a 1/4-mile in the Atlantic Ocean, bike for 10 miles and run for 3.5 miles in honor of Shari and Aliza Dwoskin; and in honor of all the individuals, families and friends who are fighting the battle against blood cancers, for all those who may be diagnosed in the future, and for the people who love them.

Please donate what you can through this page and spread the word; we need all the support we can get to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!