Dear Friends and Family,
This August will be my 20th year riding in the Pan Mass Challenge (PMC).
Things look A LOT different than they did 20 years ago. When I started riding, my “team” was just my friend Scott and me. Today, our Biker’s Dozen Team is made up of 34 riders, half of which are “second generation” riders, including my daughter Jaclyn. Back in 2004 before our first ride, Scott and I had dinner with our wives the night before. This year, our annual Friday Night Team Dinner will be almost 70 people, including riders, spouses, and parents.
Most importantly, while Scott and I raised $18,000 our first year riding, the Biker's Dozen expects to raise a total of $5 million by the end of this year. Impressively, the PMC will break the $1 billion mark this year!
For many years, my Biker’s Dozen team has dedicated our funds to new treatment protocols for children who are diagnosed with the deadly pediatric tumors Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG) and Pediatric Low Grade Astrocytoma (PLGA). Pediatric brain tumors have one of the highest death rates of all childhood cancers. Twenty years ago, a child diagnosed with DIPG was treated with the same protocols that were unsuccessfully used for the past 50 years. I unfortunately saw that firsthand with my friend Ellie, who was only 11 years old when diagnosed with DIPG, and tragically only survived 20 months under this treatment.
With the funds raised by the Biker’s Dozen and other organizations, I can proudly report that a pediatric brain tumor drug was discovered at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute that was recently approved by the FDA for wide-scale distribution. This drug will change the standard of care for a meaningful subset of pediatric brain tumor patients and inevitably save the lives of many children. To be clear, this couldn’t have happened without the PMC and your contributions to the Biker's Dozen — much of the funding for the research that led to its discovery and paid for the first clinical trials to prove efficacy were raised through the PMC from people like you!
Another difference in the Biker's Dozen team compared to 20 years ago is we now have a PMC Pedal Partner, Sabine, who joined our team last year. Sabine was diagnosed with Leukemia at 2 ½ years old and underwent chemo treatment for 2 ½ years at Dana Farber. Because of the amazing staff, research and treatment at Dana Farber, she is now doing great! She represents the best reason we train, ride, and fundraise.
The PMC is the largest fundraiser of its kind, raising much-needed funds for cancer research, research that has helped save the lives of people like Sabine. For the first time, our medical community is making progress to secure better outcomes for children with DIPG and other rare brain tumors, but there is still a long way to go before we find a cure.
So, on August 3rd and 4th, my team and I will ride 180 miles to raise money that can continue to fund advancements in the research and treatment of DIPG and PLGA. There is still so much work to be done – and I need your help! I will once again match every dollar donated to my ride. Together, we can help save children diagnosed with these devastating tumors.
To make an e-gift, you can access my PMC website by going to: http://profile.pmc.org/SS0203
To donate via check, please make it payable to PMC Fund and mail it to 24 Cedar Springs Lane, Needham, MA 02492.
Thank you for your support
Love,
Steven
