My 39-year-old niece, Angela, was diagnosed with a rare form of liver cancer over two years ago. It's called "cholangiocarcinoma". She of course was devastated, along with her husband, James, and two beautiful little girls, Sadie and Audry Claire (known as "I Declare"). And then so were the rest of her extended family members and friends. Little did we know at the time how difficult a road she'd have to travel.
In a nutshell, she's undergone surgery to remove the tumor, at least two chemo treatments, several endoscopies, and some experimental chemical treatments. But her slow-growing cancer doesn't seem to want to go away. Now it's apparent that her insurance company (whose name will remain anonymous in this writing) will not cover the treatment her doctors at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York say has the best chance of saving her life -- a liver transplant. Her insurance company has denied two appeals. While Angela and her family try to live their daily lives, she is faced with continued failed treatments, with a costly liver transplant out of her reach.
So. . . in my small way, I'm hoping to raise as much money as I can by getting the word out in my own special way. Over the last few years, I took up road cycling and found that the more I rode, the more passionate I became about it. It's like an addiction for me. As a result, I'm turning this into a goal this year that will help my niece. I plan to devote my 2009 year to Angela Hailey-Gregory, and will ride 7500 miles in 365 days while raising funds to help her live a good long life. I plan to ride locally, out my front door, on short rides, long rides (like centuries and perhaps double centuries), challenging rides (like the Alta Alpina Challenge) and easier ones, with friends and solo -- whatever it will take. That means putting on my cyclometer an average of 144 miles each week for one year. Today is January 7th and I've already ridden 196 miles.
If you feel you'd like to contribute to Angela's Fund, please stay tuned. I'll be publishing the name of the financial institution where you can send your donation. I know I, for one, would be extremely grateful. Thank you for listening to me. And more details will follow about both Angela's and my journeys.
Angela
