2015 National Pancake Day Honored Hero - Emma. In May 2012, Emma was diagnosed with leukemia and her military family moved from Germany to Maryland. She has been going through treatment for the last two years and completed her final chemo on August 3, 2014! Emma loves to play with her three brothers and sister.

We spent the day at a local IHOP in Fairfax, VA volunteering our time to collect money on behalf of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The time I was there (11am-7pm) we raised $1060! I’ll post an update once we find out how much total was raised on this day.

MY INSPIRATION:

Linda McFarland – My Mother
Aug 5 1961 - Apr 23 2009

I have always been passionate about running and it is even more rewarding to be able to run for those who may not be able to. My only regret is not finding out about Team In Training sooner. This is my second event with TNT, it is an honor and a privilege to be a part of this amazing TEAM, I am proud to wear that purple jersey.

I am currently training for the Jamestown Gran Fondo taking place on June 7, 2015. During this time I will be preparing for the challenge of riding 100 miles in a single day. Every step of the way, I will be propelled by the urgency of easing the strife of nearly 1 million patients and their families, who continue to battle these blood cancers. The next step toward finding a cure can come from you.

Why I Run/Bike:

The need is critical: An estimated 957,902 people in the United States are living with, or are in remission from, leukemia, Hodgkin lymphoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma or myeloma. Every four minutes, someone new is diagnosed with blood cancer. Every 10 minutes, someone dies.

Leukemia causes more deaths than any other cancer among children under the age of 20. Lymphomas are the most common blood cancers and incidence increases with age. The survival rate for myeloma is only 38.5 percent.

Can modest individual donations REALLY make a difference?

• $5 helps LLS invest in cures for kids with blood cancers.
• $10 helps an LLS-funded researcher to grow cells in a lab for a week, to understand how well a new blood cancer therapy might work. Or provides educational literature about blood cancers and treatment to 5 patients and their families.
• $25 raised helps LLS fund provide patient educational support for a month to one blood cancer patient. Or pays for 5 days of parking at a local hospital for a family member to take a myeloma patient to an outpatient clinic visit.
• $50 pays for resources and materials (Trish Greene Back to School Program) for two children with leukemia to help ease their transition back to school after treatment.
• $100 provides refreshments for a holiday party or summer picnic for a blood cancer support group.
• $150 helps fund general lab supplies for one week to help LLS-funded researchers conduct laboratory work needed to make life-saving blood cancer treatments possible.
• $200 supports a research fellow for a day, conducting ground breaking cancer research that is shared across all forms of cancer, not just blood cancers.
• $250 pays for 10 $25 phone cards for blood cancer survivor peer volunteers to make phone calls of support to newly diagnosed patients through the First Connection Program.
• $300 provides support for one week for LLS clinical specialists to identify eligible patients for important clinical trials to advance new, lifesaving therapies for blood cancers.
• $500 will provide reimbursement for cancer medications, not covered by insurance, to one patient with leukemia, lymphoma, or myeloma.
• $750 funds targeted whole exome sequencing in 1 patient to discover common mutations in genes known to be important in blood cancers.  
• $900 allows LLS researchers to isolate T cells from a patient’s blood to be used in a promising experimental immunotherapy clinical trial.
• $1,000 will provide reimbursement for radiation co-pays, not covered by insurance, for two lymphoma patients

Even if you are unable to donate, you can help me reach my goal by spreading the word. Please pass this page along to your family and friends and together we can make a difference. Thank you so much for joining me in this race of a lifetime!  

GO TEAM!
Nearly $50,000 Raised for our previous event

Sincerely, 

Kyle McFarland

I would like to thank the following people for their gracious donations! The original Post has been deleted due to transferring over to the National Capital Area.

Erin Martin

Nicole Avalos

Maria Luna – "This token is in support of finding a cure for this horrible disease. Our hearts felt sympathy to you and your family and may she continues to rest in peace. From the Aquahart Manor team."

Ben Johnson – “Good luck man.”

Allen Hamby

David Mahan

Christine Duvic

Brenda Dageford – “Knowing there are no words to help heal the huge hole in your heart with the loss of your mother. I miss my folks every day. Good for you doing this!”

Adam Cronin

Katie Pittz

Heidi Merz – “Go get em' buddy!”

Rebekah Jordaan – “Kyle, have fun and thank you for being of service for a noble cause.”

Rob Block – “Good luck to you with your race, and your fundraising goals. I've had many friends and family members who have fought leukemia or hodgkins and know that the research money provided by Team in Training is key to finding a cure. Thank you for taking on this challenge! Good luck!”