Welcome to my 34th Pan Mass Challenge ride letter. And boy, do I have news for you. But first, family updates during our pandemic times.

Karen and I had been planning a March vacation to St. John with close friends who ultimately decided not to travel for health concerns. We opted to go and thoroughly enjoyed the beauty of the island and the wonderful accommodations courtesy of our friends. Upon return after 6 nights, we found ourselves the only passengers on a flight from Newark to Boston--the beginning of airline shutdowns and banning visitors from abroad.

Having already been to Israel to pick up stem cells in January, February and early March, I added 14 more domestic trips and 1 international trip to date with two more trips coming up in August. During this time I’ve also been volunteering at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and I continue to donate platelets at the Kraft Family Blood Donor Center at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.

Adam and Annabel have been working from home since March and continue to be “office free”. Annabel finished up her job teaching for Lexington Public Schools and has begun a PhD program in Science Education at Boston University. We are fortunate to be nearby to visit!

Students did not return to campus after March break at Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton where Ari teaches pre calculus and geometry. He did a lot of online teaching and I was able to visit twice while I was there for stem cell pickups. He flew home with Henry, his Cavachon and they have been staying in Brookline with us since early June. It’s nice having a dog (and a son) in the house again. Henry reminds us of Stewie and Ari reminds us of how thankful we are that our kids are independent. Ari will went back to FL on August 5th to prepare for another year of in person and remote teaching.

In November I gave my 500th platelet donation and as it approached I knew that Karen and I needed to mark this milestone with a celebration. We chose a date (shortly after #500), invited local family and friends, cooked up our favorite crowd pleasing dishes and unlocked the front door. I felt very celebrated, especially to have Marie, who reliably finds my vein, in attendance.

As if this wasn’t enough celebration for one fiscal year, I was honored to receive the Distinguished Service Award from Temple Sinai along with fellow member Jill Winitzer. Together for the past 3+ years we have co-chaired a team of volunteers who have provided a myriad of services to a Syrian refugee family who we have embraced from Day 1 when we met them at Logan airport in July 2017. The award ceremony begins 46 minutes into the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jLfpR8fNaA&feature=youtu.be Don't miss what Karen (and others) had to say about me!

Now for the not so good news. On June 24th (which happens to be the day a year ago that I tore my rotator cuff) I was biking with friends in Arlington when I came upon a patch of gravel while turning and went down hard on my right side. Karen took me to the emergency room and x-rays showed a distal clavicle fracture and hairline hip fracture. I was fortunate to see my orthopedic surgeon upon leaving the ER and he confirmed that I would need surgery for the clavicle and we scheduled it for June 29th, Karen’s birthday. So, we celebrated Karen’s birthday with the kids a day early and the next day I had a plate and 5 screws inserted to stabilize the fracture. There was a tough 36 hour period when the nerve block wore off and the narcotics were insufficient to control the pain but fortunately we got permission to ramp up the dosage for a brief period of time. I’m now out of the sling and looking forward to some PT in the coming weeks and to be back on the bike in the coming weeks.

The Pan Mass Challenge is a “reimagined” event this year. For most riders, this means dedicating one or more days of riding solo or in a small group in place of the traditional two day event the first weekend in August which cannot take place due to the pandemic. For me, it means postponing my reimagined ride until some time this fall. In the meantime, cancer isn’t taking a year off and neither is my effort to raise funds that fuel the development of new treatments and the delivery of life-saving care to patients. Fundraising also creates hope, something we all need now. If circumstances prevent you from donating as generously as you have in the past, no apologies needed. Thank you for any amount you are able to give!

You can also mail a check to me at 9 Coolidge Street Brookline, MA 02446 made out to PMC-Jimmy Fund. Every donation brings us closer by the mile.

PMC donations are tax deductible and 100% will go to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

The Pan-Mass Challenge only uses your personal information to thank you and will not share it with any other organizations.

Wishing you and yours all the best. Peace to all in these most difficult times. Hang in there!

Mel