All of us have felt the effects of cancer in our lives. Some have dealt with it themselves and others have witnessed loved ones fight the cancer battle - some successfully, some not.

My family is no different. We've lost our mother, father and our sister, Annette, to this dreaded disease. On April 6th my brother, Tommy, succumbbed to pancreatic cancer after a 14-month fight.

Tommy had participated in 17 PMC's raising more than $130,000. Over the year's I've been so proud of my big brother for his dedication and commitment to this worthy cause, especially garnering such signifant donations, as asking for help is not exactly a family trait.

Because of Tom's diagnosis he was unable to ride in 2023 so I volunteered to take his place and continue what had becaome a Dufresne family tradition. In my first year, not only did I complete the 192 mile ride (crossing BOTH finish lines -one for Tommy and one for me), with your help we were able to raise more than $20,000.

Last spring, as I struggled through the early days of training, wondering what kind of sadist designs bicycle seats for a living, Tommy's words of encourage were what you might expect from most big brothers. One warm June afternoon as I stopped at his house to gulp more water and listen to his taunts regarding our thinning gene pool from oldest (him) to youngest (me), Tommy made a particularly poignant statement in response to my whining about the bike saddle. He simply said; once you ride the PMC, you won't be able to stop. He was right. 2024 will be my second year fundraising for Dana Farber and riding the PMC but unfortunately instead of riding in Tommy's honor, it will be in his memory.

At least this year he'll be at my side all the way to P-town!