This September, I am once again taking part in the Great Cycle Challenge to fight kids' cancer. I will be spinning again this year, since my bad right shoulder makes me a hazard on the road, and I am proud to be participating in this wonderful challenge for the tenth year.

I am doing this because cancer remains the leading disease-related cause of death for children in the United States. More than 15,700 children are diagnosed every year, and 38 children die from cancer every week. These are not just numbers. They are children and families facing fear, pain, and uncertainty no family should ever have to endure.

Kids should be living life, making memories, and dreaming about the future, not fighting for their lives. Supporters of Great Cycle Challenge and Children's Cancer Research Fund help fund research for safer, more effective treatments and cures. Support for Children's Cancer Research Fund helps researchers turn early ideas into larger breakthroughs, with every seed-funding dollar helping unlock additional research support. This September challenge exists to rally people to ride and raise funds for that mission.

That is why I am raising funds through this challenge to support Children's Cancer Research Fund. With reductions in federal research funding, private support matters even more right now. Every donation helps move promising research forward, bring hope to families, and get us closer to better treatments and cures for childhood cancer.

I was diagnosed with cancer two years ago. What I faced was nothing like what these children endure, but it gave me a deeper understanding of the fear and uncertainty that come with hearing that word. My mileage goal is down again this year because continuing back pain.

If you are able, please make a donation today. No gift is too small, and every dollar helps fund critical research and support families facing childhood cancer. Your generosity can help give these kids the brighter futures they deserve.

Thank you.