Dear Friends and Family,

On August 5th and 6th, I rode the Pan Mass Challenge bike-a-thon in memory of my Uncle Tom. Just about the biggest UConn Basketball fan you could meet, my Uncle Tom passed away from pancreatic cancer at the buzzer of a UConn game this winter. He endured months of cancer treatment, with loved ones at his side for every good and painful day.

Uncle Tom taught my cousins, brothers and me how to live life well and live easy. Every summer weekend, Uncle Tom would come by the beach house in his truck and let all the cousins pile in for a ride to the beach. He'd start off our beach day with Rascal Flatts playing on the radio and the windows down. We'd all anticipate a day of diving into waves, body surfing, and laughing at the jokes he lovingly cracked at our expense. If we were lucky, we'd finish the day with a sunset boat ride on the salt pond, to test out the newest boat motor he was fixing up. Summer dinners in Rhode Island weren't complete without the sound of my Uncle Tom cackling at everyone's jokes (so much that he passed out a time or two). The night would end when we'd hear 'Ready Bubs?' and he and my Aunt Margo would head home, leaving the house a bit quieter.

With my Uncle Tom around, you could be sure you'd eat well, laugh constantly and breathe easy, knowing you were a part of his pack. Throughout his cancer treatment, that didn't change; when visiting the Douglas house over the last year we'd all pile onto the living room couches to watch the Yankees (Uncle Tom’s team) and be together. Pancreatic cancer limited my Uncle Tom's ability to do certain things he loved like riding his bike to the beach or working in his vegetable garden. But it didn't keep him from offering me every tomato that grew in his garden. He endured unimaginable pain and caustic cancer treatment and he continued to care for his family through it.

The Pan Mass Challenge bike-a-thon raises funds for cancer research and patient care at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, so that one day no one has to experience this horrible disease. 100 percent of all rider-raised funds go directly to cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber.

While I was in nursing school, I had the privilege of working at Dana Farber on their multiple myeloma clinical trials team. The nurses and doctors I have worked alongside at Dana Farber combine their profound empathy for their patients with excellent cancer care and treatment development. And as Laurie Glimcher (the Dana Farber president) puts it, the PMC supports their efforts to go above and beyond in cancer treatment: PMC dollars provide critical seed funding for clinical trials and innovative studies – research that advances early detection, treatment, and prevention of cancer.

This year I will be raising $7500 for Pancreatic Cancer research at Dana Farber, in my Uncle Tom's name. My dad and I successfully rode 192 miles together— from Sturbridge to Provincetown, Massachusetts— for my dad’s 25th PMC ride. My Aunt Margo and I agree: Uncle Tom was giving us a boost up every big hill and helped us push through the most physical and emotional parts of the weekend.

The fundraising deadline is October 1st. I am so grateful for any donation you can make to push pancreatic cancer research and care in the right direction. Thank you for your support and go Huskies!

Love,

~Melissa

www.MelissasPMC.com

Donations can be made on this page, or

If you prefer to send a check, you can write the check out to:

Pan Mass Challenge

With “Melissa Sullivan” and “MS0447” (My Rider ID) in the comment

Please mail checks to:

Melissa Sullivan

59 Hundreds Road

Westborough, MA 01581

Cheers!