This one will be short & sweet - it's go time! Our team heads to St. Pete tomorrow for race weekend, and while the end of a season is always bittersweet, we are ready to rock & roll! I can't wait to see each of my teammates finish, and I'm so proud of my mentees - Ashley, Jo, Mae, Tricia, Amy, Elizabeth, & Jennie. They've been such an inspiration to me with their dedication to training and fighting blood cancer.

Our first open water swim practice. Cold does not even begin to describe.

And remember! It's not too late to donate - anything you can give will help so many. I would love to get to $3,000 before Sunday morning - it's the 30th anniversary of St. Anthony's triathlon, so seems like it would be the perfect number. Help me get there!

See you all at the finish line - Go Team!

Hello and Happy Spring!

It's that time of year again, when everything gets coated by a fine yellow dust, including my bike, running shoes, and lungs. :) I am thankful, though, that it has finally started to warm up in Atlanta - this season has primarily consisted of beautiful weather during the week and then either cold, rainy, or both weekends - great for long rides & runs!

7 rainy miles later...soaking wet shoes and crazy hair!

Despite some less than perfect weather, however, we have had a tremendous season and are getting very close to the final countdown for our race on April 28. We've gotten our wetsuits and have all learned how fun it is to squeeze into one (occasionally with the assistance of a little pam cooking spray) and experienced a mock open water swim, complete with some TNT alum friends that made it their mission to get in our way as much as possible.

The mighty mentors of Spring 2013!

We've also gone over race distance in each of our three disciplines and are starting to put everything together to show out for our Team in St. Petersburg at the end of the month. It's especially encouraging for me to see everyone really push through these last few weeks, since I've had a tough season in terms of staying injury free and healthy and haven't always felt my best.

Throughout it all, my mentees have been such an source of strength to me to watch as they have grown close to their teammates and gotten stronger as athletes. As we've pushed through some cold, wet, tough training days, I've been encouraged and taught by all of them as much as I've had the chance to return the favor. I mentioned my mentee Amy and her father in my last post - she's racing in his memory to help raise money for families who are experiencing some of what she has. Another of my mentees, Jennie, races in honor of her mother, who is a Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma survivor.

I've also got two mentees that are survivors of blood cancers themselves - and what an inspiration they are! The first is Tricia, who's a 10 year survivor of Hodgkin's Lymphoma, and has completed a full marathon, several half marathons, a century ride, and is tackling her first olympic triathlon this season. She's also a mom and has been able to experience that because of cancer research that led to a successful treatment plan for her. She's raised thousands of dollars through her involvement with TNT and works tremendously hard every season to raise more so that others can benefit the way she did.

Tricia (center) and me, with two of my other FAB mentees, Elizabeth and Ashley (the photobomber)

I met the other survivor/mentee last spring - Mae was a teammate and our honored hero for my first team, and has become one of my personal heroes as well. She continued to train through that season despite a relapse of Leukemia, and throughout the summer and fall I got to spend a good deal of time with her and still marvel at her spirit. She entered remission in the fall, but has had another relapse during this season - and yet continues to fight on and inspire me and so many others. If she can keep pushing, I can too.

Mae and me after my first race last summer

So far this season, our team has raised about $63,000 - which is amazing and I'm so proud, but there's still a need for more. I've shared a few of my stories - and there are so many more - to show you concrete examples of what the money YOU donate does. My life has been so blessed by the people I've met - especially the group I've gotten to work so closely with this season - and many of them literally owe their lives to what LLS does via funds raised by TNT. Many of you have experienced those blessings as well, and you may not even know.

Our first fundraising deadline is in a little less than 2 weeks, and I'm asking once more if you're able that you contribute whatever you can. We will push through the last few weeks of tough training, go through our taper madness, and then tackle the ocean and road at the end of the month. We just need you to help us get through the last bit with your encouragement and financial support to get us to our goal - your life will be blessed as mine as been. That's a promise.

Hello All!

Hard to believe it's February! It has been a while since I've updated my blog - the holidays kept me busy and then I had a bike crash just after Christmas and ended up with a separated shoulder and some bruised ribs. As a result, I had to put my training on the shelf for a bit - which drove me crazy! - but I have started getting back at it over the last couple of weeks. I had a great time encouraging my teammates while they were training, but nothing beats being out on the road or in the pool with everyone as we become a family.

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Team - training. Me - taking pictures, wishing I was training.

We've spent a lot of time getting to know each other over the last several weeks and I continue to be moved and impressed by the stories that each person brings with them as they fight blood cancer. We have so many survivors and people who have had family directly impacted by these diseases, and it never ceases to inspire me to hear about someone fighting for someone they love.

Throughout the remainder of the season, I hope to be able to pass on the stories of my mentees with all of you. They (along with all of our team) are such a great group, and I'm very, very blessed to have the opportunity to work with each of them - and each of them inspires me through my own training. One of my Mentos (way more fun than mentee), Amy Weaver, has jumped in with both feet as she trains for her first triathlon in memory of her father. She's stronger at every workout and her passion to raise money and fight for LLS is contagious.

Amy Weaver & Me!

And that passion that's present in each of us is also fueled each time we hear of a new drug, new treatment, or new research breakthrough. Earlier this week, LLS celebrated the announcement that the FDA has just approved a new drug for Multiple Myeloma to help patients who have grown resistant to other treatments. Projects like this are supported by LLS, and the money we raise for TNT helps fund that support. While we still have much work to do, progress is being made and every gift helps families like Amy's who fight these battles every day. My teammates and I will keep getting up at crazy hours and swimming, riding, and running - because that's what we do - and I encourage any of you who are able to donate to consider it, because it does change lives.

Happy December!

Just wanted to give everyone an update on the Spring team training and our journey so far. The team started training about 3 weeks ago, and we're having such a great time getting to know each other and getting into the rhythm of regular training. I'm really enjoying the time I'm spending getting to know my mentees and other teammates and can already tell it's going to be such a great season!

I mentioned in my welcome past that I wanted to share some stories of how I was impacted my first season with you, and I want to briefly talk about Creed, who some of you may remember was one of my honored heroes this summer.

Creed was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), which is a disease that can affect the blood and bone marrow and is classified as a blood cancer. There has also been attention drawn to MDS recently after Robin Roberts was diagnosed earlier this year. Like Robin, Creed received a bone marrow transplant, which seemed to help successfully fight the MDS in his body.

However, Creed faced many complications in the aftermath of his transplant, but his family kept fighting and always remained hopeful. I remember talking to his stepmom (a friend of mine at work) and every time someone would ask about Creed, she'd smile and say, "He's a fighter" and that they were all hopeful he'd be home soon. But that didn't happen. Creed's little body gave out and he passed away.

Earlier this fall, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) announced that a drug they had provided support funding for, rigosertib, was licensed to Baxter International, in order to advance the drug's research toward regulatory review and patient access. Rigosertib is the lead drug in development for treating patients with myelodysplastic syndrome - the type of cancer that Creed fought. It really brought what TNT does on behalf of LLS to light for me to see that the disease that affected this little boy who had grown to have such an impact on me is being fought by the organization that I'm involved with.

I'm writing this post tonight because tomorrow would have been Creed's 8th birthday. And as his family grieves his loss and also celebrates his life, I want to honor his spirit by asking all of you to consider donating so that other families like Creed's can continue to fight their battles and see their hope increase. Your donations DO make a difference - this is just one example.

A tradition among TNT participants is to write their honored heroes' names on their body on race day, and I was so proud to have Creed's name on my arm, both in honor of his spirit and in memory of his life. He gave me strength when I was tired, and hot, and ready to see the finish line. And I will continue to wear his name proudly - this season at St. Anthony's, and in all of my TNT races in the future. And I'll keep this photo in my head to remind me to keep asking for your help so that my teammates and I can keep fighting for all of those who can't.

October 12, 2012

Hello and Happy Fall! I hope you're all enjoying the cooler weather, leaves starting to change, and pumpking spice lattes. :) I'm in the last month of training before a big race in November in Florida and am excited to say that I have just signed up for my second season with Team in Training. As many of you know, I signed up early this year to train for my first triathlon, primarily as a way to really get going again after a hard year recovering from knee surgery in 2011. And it worked! I finished my first race in late June with my teammates, coaches, and family supporting me.

With my medal - I did it!

Through that first season, I fell in love with the sport and have continued to train and completed a few more races during the year. More importantly, though, I fell in love with Team in Training and what the organization does for cancer patients and their families.

My family has been directly impacted by this disease through the loss of my cousin Lee Smith and a scare for my dad a few years ago. In addition, I have met so many people over the last few months that have fought these battles and benefitted from the work that the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, through Team in Training and other fundraising campaigns, does. My Spring team had three survivors training with us for the season that were a tremendous inspiration along the way. We had teammates and coaches whose immediate family had been directly impacted by blood cancer and listened to their stories - some of survival, and some unfortunately not, but all tremendous reminders of why we do what we do. I had a personal honored hero - a strong little boy named Creed - lose his battle during the season, giving me even more of a reason to push through every training session and work as hard as I can to do whatever it takes to find a cure.

I will talk more about all of these people throughout this season, but bring them up now to say this: These stories, along with countless others, have brought me to a point where I want to continue to be part of a mission to help find cures and more effective treatments for blood cancers. To accomplish that goal this season, I’ll be participating in the St. Anthony's Triathlon in St. Petersburg, FL as a member of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Team in Training. St. Anthony's is an Olympic distance event, which means my teammates and I will complete a 1,500 meter swim, 25 mile bike ride, and 6 mile run. I'm very fortunate to have been selected as a mentor for this season as well, and am tremendously excited about the opportunity to serve as a source of encouragement for my teammates as we work together over the next 6 months, just as many did for me during my first season.

Go Team!

Like all members of TNT teams across the country, I will be raising funds to help find cures and better treatments for Leukemia, Lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and Myeloma. I’m improving the quality of my life by participating and with your support; I can help improve the quality of life for patients and their families as well. Please make a donation in support of my efforts with Team in Training and help advance the research for cures.

Thank you in advance for any financial and/or emotional support you can offer – I look forward to sharing my journey with you!

Joy