Hello to all!
Happy rainy evening in the Greater Puget Sound region, and even a stormy evening to my friends in the Midwest who I hear are getting hammered with some tornado watches right now. I wanted to send an update on how things are going in our world of fundraising, awareness, and my riding.
First and foremost, thank you so much to the many individuals that responded to my first email and provided donations to get to our goal. We are so appreciative of those donations and I wanted to include you on this email to say thank you, provide you with an updated, and also, you never know when someone may want to forgo that morning coffee and give an added $5 to a great cause - you can always give more too!!
Things are going well here. We topped $1,000 in January, however, for the most part February and March were extremely flat. That is okay, though, because people were focusing on paying their taxes, getting ready for some spring projects, and saving up for spring break trips. However, I also hope that in the meantime it has added some pennies to a few pockets and that you would be willing to help us out.
Why should you help us? You know, that is a great question. I'm sure that many of you wonder how we will even get remotely close to any of our goals just by targeting family and friends. Let me be honest and say that you are definitely a big part of this endeavor and even if it is just $5 we will take any bit that you can offer up. I wish that we could tell you about the various fundraising that we have done, but much of it has been in the planning stages. Some things are too big and will have to wait for next year (like the Wine Night at Januik Winery), other things are too early to tell if they can happen this year (like a spinning relay with Anytime Fitness), and others are forthcoming in the upcoming months. For example, we will be hosting a trivia night with various swag from local breweries and potentially some specials on beers at the Wedgewood Alehouse 1 or 2 weekends this spring/summer. We have donations jars waiting for a home at local restaurants, businesses, or whoever wants to offer to help fill them. Sarah and I have been stretching our arms out and finding those who would be looking to downsize or get rid of things, and this summer will be hosting a Livestrong garage sale (hoping the neighborhood may even jump on the bandwagon). So trust us, we are doing a lot of the behind the scenes work right now which will be bearing fruit in the future.
Throughout the winter I was also fortunate enough to be able to commute quite a bit. This has helped keep my legs in tolerable shape, and now we are back to building up miles. Myself and some guys I ride with went 45 miles last weekend over the top of Lake Washington, took on the Kirkland hills, the wind of the I-90 bridge and back into Seattle. It was a great ride and I really felt like my legs could keep going. Great signs for the improving weather since, now that Gabbie is the center of our lives, most of my 60+ mile rides will be on days off during the week. The greatest part of our ride the other weekend were the hills. Last year I was always lagging in the back. However, this year I'm not. I've focused a lot on my climbing and I'm definitely getting better. This will really help with the first ride of the season in June (Flying Wheels Summer Century) which has a fair bit of climbing in the Redmond/Carnation/Duvall region. I'm also planning between the end of May and middle of June to take a weekend and bike up to Anacortes one day, meet Sarah and Gabs, and ride back the next. Between the rolling hills, possibly some added riding on Fidalgo Island, and the 2 days of miles it will be great prep for the Seattle to Portland ride.
It is not difficult to keep the focus on this challenge and the reason why we are doing this. A man I knew during my diagnosis has had his cancer spread into his lungs and the family is beginning palliative care. The mother of a family at church was recently diagnosed for a second time with breast cancer. Another friend had a spot removed which thankfully was benign. Another friend was missing her mom who she lost too many years ago. And then there is the little girl from church who comes in every weekend with her backpack holding the tubes supplying her dosage. This ugly disease needs your help.
My experience in the grand scheme of things has been good. In the next month or 2 I will be scheduling my 1 year check up. They skipped my 9 month scan to give my body a break from the radiation of the CT scan - no sense in encouraging a secondary cancer. I want to put off my 1 year scan as long as I can, but I'm also very excited for it. Our oncologist has said that the greatest probability of recurrence is in the first year. However, that also doesn't do much for anxiety - especially when your wife likes the temperatures warmer and the spring weather leads to warm - almost sweaty nights. Or when a lingering sinus infection makes you wonder. Still I trust the Lord that He will take care of our family and that there is nothing to worry about for years to come other than the scars on my body and decreased circulation in my pinky and middle finger of my left hand (damn chemo burns).
So to that end, what can you do to help us? Were you thinking of going to lunch this week? Could you put that off for next week and make a donation? Is there someone you know who's name you could make the donation in their honor - or if we've lost them, in their memory? I know that everyone can help out, but I also know that everyone has to do what is best for you. I'm just asking you to think about it. We would really appreciate if you'd help us get that 1 step closer to never having to talk about this again.
Please generously consider supporting us in our efforts to end cancer and provide the support needed for all of the cancer community who has to hear the words "you have cancer"
You can make a donation online at http://austin2011.livestrong.
Thank you for your generosity and remember that I will ride 1 mile for every $5 donated. You just let me know who I should ride for.
LIVESTRONG!
Andrew J Steinbrecher
Andrew J Steinbrecher
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