Hello Friends! This will be my 9th year participating in Swim Across America. When I first started participating in this event in 2016, I had no idea of what the magnitude of this mission would evolve into. Over the last 9 years, I have had family, friends, family of friends, co-workers and patients affected in some way by this terrible disease. While some have defeated it, others have fought bravely but ultimately succumbed to their illness. Cancer does not discriminate. It does not care who you are, how much you have or what you have accomplished in life. It is apparent to me more than ever that we must continue to find new ways to fight cancer and this is only possible with fundraising and continuing to use our best and brightest scientific minds to strive daily for breakthroughs. For those in the past whom have donated to this cause, my deepest thanks from the bottom of my heart.
In 2024, I swim for my dad, my hero, my inspiration for almost everything I do in life. A man whose passion and interest in healing was passed onto me at a young age and served as my motivation into pursuing a career in medicine. A little over a year ago, he was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, one of the most deadly types of cancer. Since then he has been fighting relentlessly under the direction and guidance of the brilliant minds at Siteman Cancer Center in St. Louis, Missouri. While his prognosis is ultimately poor, I am thankful for every additional day I have him in my life. I have read and researched more about pancreatic cancer in the last year than I ever cared to, and it is apparent that funding is still needed for this and many other types of cancer. For him and the many others like him, I will swim every year until I cannot any longer. Please consider donating to my cause.
