It was July 2009 when Sally, my wife of 16 years, told me she was planning to ride in the CT Challenge bike ride later that month. She had been battling lung cancer for about a year and was in the middle of a six-week hiatus from her third set of chemo treatments. She rode the 12-mile ride with three friends, Meg Staunton, Carolyn McKenna and Kitty Fiol. The smile on her face and the satisfaction in her voice could not have been greater. She had been bitten by the CT Challenge bug that day and vowed to ride again in 2010. Sadly her disease accelerated last fall and overtook her life in February of this year.

As a lasting tribute to her admiration for this organization and her incredible strength and faith in herself, her family, her friends and the community in which she lived, I picked up a road bike for the first time and established the team “Ride Sally Ride.” The fact that we have 58 riders in early June 2010 and many more talking about signing up is a testament to Sally’s ability to foster and maintain connections with people spanning every period of her 42 years. During our last journey fighting cancer, I watched my wife use her seemingly infinite network to find individuals whose professions ranged from oncology, to psychotherapy to chiropractics to support groups, to faith and religion to nutrition to energy healing in a concerted effort to find ways to help her in the battle for her life and reclaim, even for a brief moment, the vigor of her past. Her efforts brought her to Jeff Keith and the CT Challenge and what she sought is reflected in this organization’s mission. Through her efforts my wife found a place of happiness and peace that we can only hope to discover and made lasting impressions of her power on her family, friends, doctors and priests.

I ride because I want to show the world the power of connections and how those connections can lead us farther down the path blazed by Sally and CT Challenge where they may more easily find the resources to get them quickly on the road to rebuilding their lives and finding peace.

Editors note:  George Richard’s Team Ride Sally Ride was 76 teammates strong when they took part in the 2010 CT Challenge Bike Ride.  The team raised over $96,000 to support programs for cancer survivors!