Besides Pan-Mass Challenge weekend itself, my other favorite
PMC event is the Heavy Hitter Evening, which occurs every spring. A “Heavy
Hitter” is a rider who reaches a certain fundraising threshold above the
minimum amount. Last year, the minimum to raise was $4,300, but to be a Heavy
Hitter, you had to raise $6,700. Collectively, Heavy Hitters represent one
third of riders, but we raise two thirds of the funds. I am honored to be included
in this group of elite fundraisers.
There are two aspects of the Heavy Hitter Dinner that keep
me coming back every year. The first is the speaking program. Billy Starr, the
founder of the PMC, always welcomes the crowd and goes over last year’s
fundraising stats. He showed an infographic that was published in The Atlantic
showing the top athletic fundraisers in the country. The PMC is high atop this
list in terms of total funds raised for a single event. The fact that 100
percent of rider-raised funds go to the Jimmy Fund makes this statistic even
sweeter.
Every year, the speaking program includes an inspirational
story from someone in the PMC community. This year, it was Loie Williams, a nine-year
rider who experienced her own battle with cancer a few years ago. She shared
her cancer story and her PMC story – the two were interwoven wonderfully. Her
story has a happy ending – she kept her promise to her son that she would not
let cancer kill her. She is still riding, now as a Living Proof rider, of which
there are hundreds. They are the most inspirational riders out on the road –
they are living proof that our efforts are saving lives.
The other aspect of the event that I look forward to is
spending time with my Team Kinetic Karma teammates – not in spandex. Who knew
we cleaned up nicely?! It’s always great to spend time with this fun, crazy,
supportive group of nut jobs. The camaraderie that we have on the road is still
there when we have cocktails in hand.
I don’t fundraise above the minimum just to be able to
attend this event (which we all purchase tickets for, by the way!). I do it to
make that much more of a difference in the fight against cancer. If you’ve
supported my ride in the last four years, you’ve been a part of that. Join me
in going beyond the minimum to make cancer history. Please make yourtax-deductible, cancer-fighting, life-saving donation today. Thank you!
