This year I'm swimming the 2k Swim Across America in the Long Island Sound on behalf of Team Payne. 

TEAM PAYNE swims in honor of our family members fighting their own battle with cancer and for all those who have overcome it. We swim in memory of Richard and Jane Payne, my grandparents. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Treatment Center (MSKCC) holds a special place in our hearts and all donations go directly to funding research at MSKCC. The goal of Team Payne remains the same - fight and defeat cancer. 

Team Payne was founded in 2004 and Payne family and friends have swum in the annual Swim Across America LI Sound event since. Our small family team has grown every year. In 2021 the Team raised $50,000 and in 2022 $77,000. 

For those of you who know our family, you know the incredible story of my grandmother Jane Payne. At the age of 46, Jane was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer and given a short term life expectancy. She fought and she lived for another 30 years; long enough to watch her 7 children become adults, and long enough to meet all 16 of her grandchildren. 

We continue to remember and miss my Uncle Brian Payne. I've never met someone so universally loved and respected. Brian was the uncle you could always count on, the best friend to share a beer with, and the first firefighter to run into the burning building. We were all so lucky to have him in our lives and will be swimming (and drinking Budweisers) in his honor again this year.

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