Pedal the Cause

I’m going to tell you about my sister, Laurie. She was an extremely caring and generous person. Early in her working life, she was a hair stylist. She had a devoted clientele of self-described “blue-haired little old ladies” and Black women. Most of the other stylists avoided working with them because their hair was difficult. Laurie thought everyone deserved excellent care and nice hair. She loved talking with them.

Later, with her interest in health and fitness, she became an exercise class instructor and personal trainer. Many of her clientele had special requirements and were uncomfortable and struggled with typical gym or fitness center environments:  Individuals recovering from mastectomies and other surgeries, those living with multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, limb amputations, or asthma. She welcomed everyone, helping each person define, pursue, and achieve their goals.

Helping others was always more important to Laurie than money. When one of her clients was going through a rough patch financially, she called Laurie to tell her she’d have to drop out of class. My sister insisted she continued attending, telling her, “You continuing to heal is more important than me getting paid.”

That’s who we lost to cancer at 59 years old.

 I raise money for Pedal the Cause so that fewer and fewer people have to go through that.

Pedal the Cause cancer research fundraiser. It's a celebration of survivors, a remembrance of those lost, and a movement fueled by the courage to end cancer.

Please support my efforts by donating to my fundraiser, and give with confidence knowing that 100% of your donation will fund lifesaving cancer research at Siteman Cancer Center and Siteman Kids at St. Louis Children's Hospital.