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Henry's had a big year. He's finishing up first grade. He was honored as a childhood hero at a recent Red Sox game! And this summer marks 8 years since Henry was diagnosed with cancer at birth.
Hours after first laying eyes on Henry, we sat in a hospital room as doctors explained the rigors of chemotherapy. When we asked for a second opinion, they explained that we didn’t have time. Every hour that the tumor grew, it was wreaking havoc on his spine. It was a race to keep his spinal cord intact in the hope that he wouldn't be confined to a wheelchair for life.
Sitting in that hospital room, we felt totally helpless. But we knew we had the best team of doctors caring for Henry. Little could we have imagined then, that one day our boy… who started chemotherapy when he was just one-day old, who spent weeks in isolation in Intensive Care, who didn't learn to walk until he was two, who has undergone more blood transfusions, IVs, and MRIs than anyone should ever have to… would love to play baseball and lacrosse, and do it with unmatched vigor and determination, smiling from ear to ear.
For all of Henry's determination and perseverance, there are days when he's angry ~ he wants to know why he is the only kid he knows with a limp, or a leg brace, or doing a catheter on a school field trip. Life is far from fair.
And yet we have so much to be thankful for. Henry's cancer was diagnosed before he was born. The tumor compressed his spinal cord and left him with leg paralysis and bladder and bowel dysfunction. But the damage could have been frighteningly worse.
On August 3-4th, I will ride in my fourth Pan Mass Challenge ~ nearly 200 miles across Massachusetts to raise money to fight cancer. This year, Equipe Henry will ride with 9 determined riders. But pushing me along are the hundreds of donations and notes from our supporters. It's an amazing event, and one that I share with all who support the PMC.
So many of you have watched Henry grow from near and far. And so many of you have weathered your own battle with cancer, or supported a family member or friend through the disease. We hope you'll support our ride. Every single penny raised goes directly to cancer research and treatment.
Doctors weren't sure Henry would ever walk. They call him a miracle. And we know Henry wouldn't be with us today without the generous donations of people like you. Because it's the money raised for research that lead an amazing team of doctors to diagnose Henry's cancer early ~ early enough so that he could swim, cycle, and run his heart out and show us all that he's one brave and determined little triathlete.
