RIDE FOR A CHILD

2009 Ride For A Child  | | |  Donations

September 19th, 2009 KDRV ran a story on air showing Ride For A Child riders and some of this year's honored children.  Check it out at http://kdrv.com/news/local/141889

September 13th, 2009 news story in Medford, Oregon by Tove Tupper featuring Dick Hartung and Dave Brown for Candlelighters and Ride For A Child ~  http://kdrv.com/page/141137

Ride For A Child ~ By Dan Dulley

This was my 2nd year riding for Candlelighters and Ride For A Child (RFAC). On our route this year I approached our team leader and asked if I could write a note for the Candleligthers newsletter. I want to tell you from our perspective what a privilege it is to ride for our honored kids. For some, getting ready for our ride starts early in the year, and for others, maybe it takes place all year long. Our route is over 400 miles and its imperative to get some long rides and hill climbing in. Yet even after all of this, the ride this year was hard. Our daythree-route this year, climbing out of Happy Camp, California on the way to Lake Selmac, Oregon and back over the Siskiyou Mountains was, without a doubt, my toughest ride to date. It challenged everything I had as a rider. We had many miles of climbing to start the day and at the finish too, and though a tough ride, a beautiful place to spend the evening and overnight. As I arrived in camp on day three, most of our 51 riders had already arrived. All are better at hill climbing than me, yet I made it and I was proud to have survived. As I spend time looking at all these people, it makes me appreciate what a great group I have become part of. We have in our group of RFAC riders, nurses, retired teachers, an arborist, home builder, doctor of Naturopathic medicine, building owners, packaging manufacturer, lift truck franchise operator, hotel operator, service managers, parts manager, Gonzaga University CPA graduate, team builder coordinator, accountants, business management consultants, grain brokers, hotel business recruiter, etc. While we do have some couples here, many of this group have left someone at home and taken a week of vacation away from families and spouses to ride for Candlelighters. I feel fortunate to be riding with two brother-in-laws, a sister-in-law, and a nephew. Our group of riders wear matching jerseys each day of the ride with our ‘Honored Child’s Name’ on the back of it. As 51 riders, we have quite a strong presence on the road. Other riders are always asking questions about our group and our honored kids. We give information to other riders about our kids we are riding for, about ways they can help and donate, and about the overall health of our honored kids. While our ride ends at the end of the Cycle Oregon week, the journey or ride that a family dealing with childhood cancer goes on. The doctor visits, hospital stays, the wait for test results, the weeks of radiation and chemotherapy, the anticipation of news from treatments. All the parts of dealing with cancer continue on for the families. My own family has experienced cancer and its stress on a family and a loved one. We were fortunate to have a strong and helping family and community of friends and support to get us through this journey. My hope is that Candlelighters is this for those with the same needs. The entire family, including parents and siblings, need help when childhood cancer arrives. If you are reading this column, then most likely you have helped Candlelighters yourself. All of the riders are appreciative of all the financial commitments and volunteers and support staff that helped with our ride and made our RFAC event a success. We all appreciate your support. To our honored kids, Michael, Chloe, Josiah, Jimmy, Nikolai, and Jensen, I wish you a long and healthy and wonderful life. I have so appreciated riding in your honor and look forward to hearing about you for many years to come.

Ride For A Child ~ By Dick Hartung

We arrived home last night from our week of Ride For A Child (RFAC). Today, the glow of an incredible week burns bright. As I sit to write this article between rounds of drying tents in the sun, fresh memories of the week come flooding to mind. The night before day one of Cycle Oregon, 60 riders and volunteers, some close friends but many introduced for the first time, gather round for introductions at our first team meeting. On our team we boast youth, Brian Leslie at 22, and wisdom, Alan Zehntbauer at 70. We have a seasoned cyclist in Bruce Olsson who has raced in and won the Race Across Oregon, a 500 mile, 24 hour marathon. Many of our riders have participated in numerous Cycle Oregons and RFACs. In the faces of some, you see the nervous anticipation of their first Cycle Oregon and RFAC. I see all the questions of my first RFAC, eight years ago. Have I trained enough? How will my body hold up? Will someone help me when I get a flat? What if I get lost? What time do I get up? What have I gotten myself into? The transformation from a group of 60 acquaintances to a RFAC team bonded in challenge, triumph, laughter, and tears starts slowly and builds through the week. We are sharing a week of experiences that reach beyond the norm of everyday life. It is a rare day you climb a difficult 10 mile hill, only to face another 20 miles of 30 mph head winds just to get into camp. Seldom do you camp with 60 close friends with only a piece of nylon separating you from your neighbor. We all get to experience the good, the bad, and the ugly! For better or worse, the bonds of intimacy are formed. Each day’s ride is different, and all of us will ride the day and arrive at the next night’s destination at different times. Some start early (before 7 a.m.), and some start late. Some arrive early (before 1 p.m.), and some don’t arrive till 5 p.m. In the afternoons, as we converse, laugh, share stories, and commisurate. There is a shared team vigilance until the last rider arrives safe in camp. With the same energy it takes to ride each day, we are surrounded by the amazing care and compassion of our support team. Pack, unpack, setup, and take-down 50 tents, 120 luggage bins, bike racks, 60 chairs, two canopies and many coolers. Manage post cards, snacks, and laundry. Drive vans and trucks to the next camp, then start all over again. Up at 5:30 a.m. each day to begin anew. A Herculean task, but a labor of love gifted to the riders each day with amazing grace! A big thank you and a huge debt of gratitude go out to Rob, Tiina, Maureen, Jack, Dan, James, and our massage therapists Annilee and Andrea. By Saturday morning, our last day of riding (Grants Pass to Medford), we have cohered into a close community of friends. As a poignant reminder as to the real reason we are out here, four Candlelighters children ride their bikes with us as they lead out the entire team. Michael, Nikolai, Chloe and Renna not only pull us out of camp, but they pull on our hearts. It was a very tender and emotional morning, reinforcing for us all the compelling need for the services and programs provided by Candlelighters. By the end of the day, our journey was over. But for our Candlelighters children and families, the journey through the challenges, triumphs, laugher and tears of childhood cancer continues on. We would like to thank all our riders and support team for their ongoing effort at helping to raise funds and awareness for Candlelighters. Brian Leslie, Tom Leslie, Maureen Casey , Dan Dulley, Muriel Garven, Dan Hawthorne, Kathleen Hermann, Dave Brown, Mike Leslie, Jim Ruble, Marc Alexander, Rob Koch, Bruce Milliken, Tony Montes, Sally Stack, Craig Stack, Mark Waller, Alan Zehntbauer, Dave Murray, Marla Murray, Chris Beyer, Carol Purdy, Mandi Chestler, Stuart Chestler, Kara Owen, Darrell Young, Melissa Quandt-Holden, Tom Breyer, Jim Collins, Brad Kendrick, Walt Krumbholz, Bryan Scholz, Carol Pullin, Tom Mafera, Dick Hartung, Ra Antico, Kevin Blow, Dick Boyd, Tim Fleskes, Tiina Johnston, Rose Martin, Gary Spencer, Joel Grayson, Matt “Cruiser” Cohen, Paula McCullough, Janet Grayson, Penny Olsson, Bruce Olsson, Terrill Collier, Kathy Cuhna, Shawn Engelberg, Don Jones, Suzy Jones, Andrea Jones, Annilee Hyre, Jack Borowczak, James Nelsen, and Dan Thompson.

2009 Ride For A Child Honored Children

2009 Ride For A Child ~ Dick Hartung, September Newsletter Article

All the pieces of our 2009 Ride For A Child plan have fallen into place. We are about to venture out for the culminating week (9/12–9/19), 437 miles of cycling with Cycle Oregon through the beauty of Southern Oregon and Northern California. A myriad of decisions have been reviewed, discussed and put in action by our RFAC committee, riders, honored children, corporate sponsors, supporters and volunteers. Our six honored children, the heart and soul of our ride, now have a special relationship with our team. Our 55 riders have trained all summer and are now svelte riding machines, ready to take on the challenges of the Siskiyou mountains. Our road warrior volunteers are ready for a week of hucking and shucking 50 tents and lots of gear from one site to the next and showering the riders with refreshments, encouragement, and general good cheer! Our two volunteer massage therapists stand at the ready to sooth those aching muscles and nurse a few more miles out of those tired legs. Kind souls in each of our camp sites anxiously await the arrival of 55 sweaty RFAC jerseys to wash, our key to keeping the Candlelighters message on display each day we ride. We have previewed the route and refreshments are stashed in strategic caches, ready to provide much needed hydration to depleted bodies. Yes….. I think we are really ready. And what does the week hold for us? A few paragraphs can hardly do it justice. We will grow as friends, a team, and a Candlelighters community, that is for sure. Some of us will ride fast and some not so fast. For some of our riders, they will be riding in their first Cycle Oregon and first long distance ride. For others, Cycle Oregon is an old friend that is visited each year. Regardless of age or experience, we will all be looking out for one another, making sure that everyone is safe and accounted for at the end of each day’s ride. We will get to meet up with some of our honored children, Michael from Ashland and Nikolai from Grants Pass. One day during the week, we will plan a morning for our honored kids and their families to lead our entire team out for the day’s ride. This event is always a highlight for me, and local news coverage always helps to elevate the mission of Candlelighters in the local communities. Medford to Yreka, Yreka to Happy Camp, Happy Camp to Lake Selmac, Lake Selmac to Glendale, Glendale to Grants Pass, and Grants Pass back to Medford. Each day’s ride will hold special memories: unique scenery, a really tough hill, a blessed descent, a special lunch, a new friendship, a tire flat or two or three, or sharing the story of our honored children. No doubt, there will be a day when the road is too steep or the legs too tired. There will be that niggling in the back of the mind that says, “Give it up; you don’t have to work this hard.” That’s when our honored kids lift us up to provide that extra incentive to keep on going! Though most of us have not walked in their shoes, we recognize the courage and determination they display as they battle much bigger challenges than sore legs and tired bodies. Really, it makes our days seem pretty easy! To know more about RFAC, follow our week of riding, or make a donation to support this amazing fundraiser, visit our web site at www.4kidswithcancer.org. If you would like to meet our incredible honored children, Jimmy, Michael, Nikolai, Jensen, Kennedy, and Josiah, join us on October 24th for our Harvest of Hope dinner auction. Cheer them on as we recognize these children in a special awards ceremony.

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Thank You Ride For A Child
2009 Sponsors

Sponsorship Still Available

Support Team Sponsor $500

· Logo and name displayed on all RFAC event promotion material
· Your company listed as RFAC sponsor in Candlelighters monthly newsletter
· Prominent recognition in background slideshow at Candlelighters signature event, the Harvest of Hope

Please contact Shelli at s_volpigno@msn.com for more information.  Thanks.

 

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Ride For A Child is a fundraiser for Candlelighters. Every September, RFAC riders participate by riding the Cycle Oregon route. Riders raise funds and awareness for Candlelighters, as well as give support to an honored child. Children we honor are representative of the Candlelighters families and are selected in order to put authentic faces on the wide variety of diagnoses and ages of children who battle cancer.

Donate to Ride For A Child 

Please consider honoring those children fighting cancer by making a donation to Ride For A Child.  Click on the "Make a Donation" button.  If your donation is for a particular RFAC rider, please be sure to add their name in the "optional line" and thank you again for your support.