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Pedaling Toward a Cure

Ever heard of a guy named Brian Turner?

I've known Brian since I was just 5 yrs old. We used to spend our summers together at the local swimming pool. What I didn't know then, however, was that someday I'd be completing marathons, training for bikerides, hosting parties, even breaking bones in a desperate effort to pay for his little lab mice.

You see, Brian (in the lab coat) is one of the lead researchers in a lab run by Yosef Refaeli, which was awarded the largest grant in Colorado from the Leukemia/Lymphoma society (LLS).

As many of you know, I am an oncology nurse, working with victims of leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. Those of you who so graciously and generously followed my marathon quest last summer also know that my brother-in-law, Jeff Poppert died from ALL at the age of 11, a close family friend, Diana Reidy (seated) was diagnosed with the same form of Leukemia in 2007 at the age of 2, and my best friend, Christy Donnellon (on right), was diagnosed the same year with Lymphoma. I was able to raise $15,575.00 with my efforts last year for the LLS. When I came home after the marathon to multiple stress fractures in my foot and aches and pains in places I didn't even know existed, I thought I'd at least take a year or two off of my fundraising efforts and relax and enjoy the summer with my 4 kids.

Then I went and visited Brian's lab right here in Denver.

They are so unbelievably close to making such huge strides in stem cell transplants, chemotherapies, biotherapies, and, yes, even a CURE for cancer, that there was just no way I could sit around. If my efforts meant they could speed up and expand their research, by even just a little bit, then I had no choice. I needed to be sure that if Diana or Christy relapsed, they would have the best chance possible. I needed to be able to look my patients in the eyes and feel like I was doing everything possible for them too.

So, here I am again. Asking for anything at all you can donate, even in this horrific economy. Cancer doesn't seem to care how bad the economy gets.

This year I will be training to ride just over 100 miles in Moab, Utah in September. I've never been a very strong biker, but hopefully it will save my feet from stress fractures!

Once again, I will be sending updates on my training progress throughout the summer. Be sure and check back and see how close I can get to my goal this year!

I am forever awed and inspired by your generosity.

With love and gratitude,

Kate Sullivan Poppert