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August 7, 2002 |
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APRIL 2002 Below is the fundraising letter that I wrote back in November, and an important element of it was about an incredibly inspirational person and friend, Louie Bonpua. Unfortunately, in February Louie had to return to the hospital in for more treatments for his lymphoma. Just days after being admitted, he left the hospital in an ambulance and ran the Olympic torch in San Francisco! Hundreds of people came out to cheer on Louie as he walked the torch near the Golden Gate Bridge. But on the drive home, he slipped into a coma and passed away shortly thereafter. He was the type of person who lived for the moment and did everything that he had ever wanted to do. Louie was the type of person who decided to do an Ironman AFTER he found out he had a form of lymphoma...and he did one (Ironman Canada 2001). Nicoletta and I attended his funeral, which hundreds of people attended. He really had touched the lives of that many people. -------------------------------------------------------------- NOVEMBER 2001 Dear Everybody, Most of you know I can be stubborn. OK…really stubborn. However, I do like to pretend that I'm not blindly stubborn - whether or not it's true - and am open to changing my plans when the situation changes. Well, instead of competing in Ironman Florida in Nov 2001, I'm training and fundraising with Team In Training again to prepare for Ironman Lake Placid in July 2002. There are two reasons I've changed my plans. First, recently I irritated my knee, and Ironman Florida would make it much worse. I've learned to be more careful; that whole coma-thing tends to make one more cautious. Second, I now have the opportunity to train with the TNT Ironteam and be a do-gooder at the same time, raising money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. A no-brainer, right? Yep, Ironteam is 70 average people swimming, biking and running to find a cure for leukemia, lymphoma and other cancers. Average people doing something extraordinary for a group of people that just want to be…average…just like the rest of us. Hmm. On July 28, 2002, I'll complete a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run at Lake Placid. Training and the event itself will be significant challenges, but still nothing in comparison to that of our honorees and the others who must battle this disease on a daily basis. In talking to these battlers, they can tell you exactly how the Leukemia society has made significant differences in their lives by developing treatments that improve their chances of survival and quality of their lives. An inspiration for anyone is Ironteam member Louie Bonpua. You may have seen him in the media when he amazingly completed Ironman Canada last year while under treatment for chronic myelogenous leukemia. Eating bugs in Utah is NOTHING compared to this guy. It's amazing to watch the video documentaries of him racing, taking chemo drugs along the way, and then finishing in 16:56:30, less than 4 minutes before the 17-hour cutoff (see his race diary: http://www.shrimplouie.com/triathlons/IMC.htm). Research funded by this organization led to the treatments that have kept Louie alive, though unfortunately not cured, for the past several years while Louie also works to find a bone marrow match. In addition to treatment research, your donations also fund bone marrow drives to find potential donors and the bone marrow registry itself. I'm asking big things of myself between the training & a fundraising goal of at least $9000. In addition to writing loads of letters, one of which you may have received, I'll also be organizing an active wear fashion show fundraising event in March 2002. Keep an eye out for details via email! If you do contribute, in addition to the warm fuzzy feeling you get from getting a 100% tax deduction, I'll be sending you periodic email updates, a picture of me crossing the finish line and a final thank you letter listing the names of all my contributors, as I did with my Wildflower event. Thanks in advance for your support! Unfortunately, we can take credit cards online (yet). If you would like to donate money to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, please download/print the Sponsorship Form from this site and mail your donation to me at: 2401 Jackson St #8San Francisco, CA 94115 Or email me at [email protected] and I'll send you the form and a self-addressed stamped envelope! Thank you! |
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| As of August 1: $9000 Goal: $9000 |
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