Dear Friend,
I hope this letter finds you well. As the weather gets warmer and the days become longer, I am once again preparing to participate in the 40th Pan-Massachusetts Challenge. On August 3rd and 4th, I will be riding in my 20th PMC ride, a 163-mile bike ride from Wellesley, Massachusetts to Provincetown, Massachusetts, with 100% of every rider-raised dollar donated directly to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The PMC is the institute’s largest single contributor, raising more than 55 percent of the annual revenue at The Jimmy Fund®. In 2018, the PMC gave a record gift of $56 million to Dana-Farber, bringing the PMC’s 39-year contribution to Dana-Farber to more than $654 million since its inception in 1980.
As in past years, I continue to ride in memory and honor of friends and colleagues who have been afflicted by cancer. Despite the medical advancements made over the years, cancer still afflicts almost 2 million Americans annually and approximately 1/3 of them will die from this horrific disease. While I’m not educated or trained to discover a treatment, I do know I’m blessed with the strength to pedal my bike 163 miles to raise funds for cancer care and research, as well as possessing the commitment and perseverance to continue this effort until this horrible disease is eradicated.
As the years go by, the success rates rise and the death rates fall, evidence of our collective effort to get Closer By the Mile, a result of the $654 million the PMC has raised since its inception. With that said, the success rates remain far from 100%. In 2019, as PMC riders will be peddling towards a record goal of $60 million, I invite you to join the effort with a donation. The following link http://www2.pmc.org/profile/JO0033 will take you to my PMC profile page where you can make your tax-deductible donation (Tax ID: 04-2746912) with 100% of your donation going to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. If you prefer to write a check, please make it out to the PMC, The Jimmy Fund or Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and mail it to me directly at:
John O'Rourke
P.O. Box 636
Baltic, CT 06330
If your employer has a matching gift program, ask your Human Resources department for a form, and follow the process for matches. For all of you that have supported me in past years, thank you and I hope you are still in a position to support the PMC once again this year. For those that are choosing to join the fight for the first time, I thank you as well.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions or assistance that you may need in supporting this effort. Best wishes for continued health and prosperity in the months ahead.
Most appreciatively,
John O'Rourke
Please consider becoming a platelet donor, see LINK for FAQ’s.
