Heavy Hitter

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!