On August 3rd and 4th, I'll be getting back in the saddle for my 7th Pan Mass Challenge to ride the 192 miles from Sturbridge to Provincetown. Over the last 6 years, together we have raised $86,397 for the life saving research being done at Dana Farber Cancer Institute. This year, as Team Golden T (now a team of 3!), we are setting out to hit the six figure fundraising mark of $100,000.

I'm riding for my dad (the T behind Team Golden T) who fought a battle for the ages following his Stage 4 metastatic lung cancer diagnosis in 2018. He bowed out of the fight gracefully on May 3, 2024. He was so grateful for his doctors at Cape Cod Hospital and their partnership with Dana Farber, who allowed him to truly live with cancer. Modern medicine, combined with his positive attitude, turned an initial prognosis of 6 months into 6 years. He loved the PMC, and he loved to cheer me on. I can hear him telling me "you bettah get out there!" for my training rides, and I know he will be carrying me up the hills come August.

A recap of my PMC journey, the causes we have supported, and a reminder of why I ride:

- In 2023, we raised $18,501 for Dr. Marcoux's Lung Cancer Research Fund at Dana Farber in honor of the toughest guy I know, my cousin Mike. He recieved incredible care at Dana Farber from Marcoux and his team throughout 2023, and fought to see his twins turn 21, passing the day after their birthday on January 2, 2024. He would want us to keep fighting, so we will.

- In 2022, we raised $24,370 for the Ovarian Cancer Fund, in memory of my college roommate’s incredible sister, Catherine Todd. This money went directly to Dr. Ursula Matulonis & her team at Dana Farber. This donation contributed to their study that led to the FDA's recent approval of Mirvetuximab, a new breakthrough therapy for certain patients with ovarian cancer. We have a long way to go, but this is really encouraging progress. You can read more about this treatment here.

- In 2018, I signed up for my first PMC to honor my uncle, David Scudder, who passed in 2014 following his lost battle with pancreatic cancer. When I started the PMC, there had not been any significant improvements in the 5-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer patients in almost 50 years, as it remained stagnant at below 5%. Over the last few years, that has started to change -- the 5-year survival rate is now 12%, largely in part to the development of early detection tools for pancreatic cancer. With more work to be done, this is progress we’ve been hoping for.

The camaraderie of this event is what keeps me going back each year. The encouragement between riders & volunteers out on the route, combined with the outstanding support of the #TeamT community year after year, is second to none. I opted to have surgery to repair my hip labrum this year for the best shot at continuing to ride for years to come.

Please know that every single dollar counts and motivates me every pedal of the way (and there’s lots of pedaling). The PMC donates 100% of every rider-raised dollar to Dana Farber, raising over $72 million in 2023 and is on track to hit ONE BILLION in total fundraising in 2024.

Thank you so much for your continued support. There is no better team than Team Golden T!

With gratitude,
Sheila