Dear Friends and Family,
As most of you know, I had a snowmobile accident several yrs ago that resulted in a Spinal Cord Injury. Since then my life has been enriched with new experiences, activities & relationships despite being confined to a wheelchair. One of those relationships is with my good friend Geoff Kent. We were brought together because both of us are living with an SCI & both played basketball for Coach Bob Ward at different schools. Geoff has been a HUGE help & mentor for me not only with life but also in the sport of Wheelchair Racing. I am running the Chicago Marathon on October 7th to help raise funds for Unite 2 Fight Paralysis (U2FP). Geoff's non-profit organization, SPINAL CORD INJURY SUCKS!, started with 7 runners in 2008. Over several years we've raised over $600,000 for spinal cord injury research. U2FP is carrying on what SCIS started. These organizations are removing taboos about life with paralysis and raising funds for spinal cord injury research. On October 7th, I will be one of 14 runners, 3 in wheelchairs, advancing this important cause.
It is an extremely exciting time in the field of spinal cord injury cure research, but the best labs, working on the most promising therapies are still chronically and critically underfunded. For example, in 2013, SCIS raised enough money to cover the annual cost of TWO full-time post-doctoral researchers. Think about that: a few runners running a few miles was enough to finance two PhD-educated scientists working on therapies to cure spinal cord injury for a full year. That is an important, powerful charitable impact, and I strongly encourage you to help out. U2FP is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which means all of your donations on my behalf are tax-deductible. THANK YOU for your support!!!
Time Goal: 2:00
Unite 2 Fight Paralysis is proud to be an official charity team for the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in 2018. Team U2FP is a group of passionate, hard working runners and wheelchair racers committed to racing the 26.2 miles and fundraising to advance research towards a cure for spinal cord injury.
The team raised over $105,000 in the past three years. All funds directly support our mission: to cure paralysis through advocacy, education, and support for research. Thank you for your support!
| Supporters | |||
| Name | Date | Amount | Comments |
| Isaac Smith | 10/24/2018 | $10.00 | Christine Torcaso | 10/13/2018 | $30.00 | I admire your drive Swanny! Xoxo | Kurt Filiatreault | 10/09/2018 | $50.00 | Proud of you bud! | Mandy Wessell | 10/08/2018 | $50.00 | So proud of all you accomplish!! You’re a rockstar! | Lester Wiltfong | 10/06/2018 | $10.00 | Mahmoud Chatat | 10/06/2018 | $100.00 | With love and support to all that stay positive and strong | Aaron Andrea Poglayen | 10/06/2018 | $25.00 | Good luck buddy!! | Dan Stefanowski | 10/06/2018 | $20.00 | Go gettem swany love yea brother we all now you will do great!! | Linda Cole | 10/06/2018 | $30.00 | Good Luck! Alex & Linda Cole | Richard Fernandez | 10/06/2018 | $25.00 | Best of luck buddy! | Heather Reimers | 10/06/2018 | $50.00 | Steve Pressoir | 10/06/2018 | $100.00 | Erin Powers-Smith | 10/06/2018 | $25.00 | Good luck Bob!! Cheering for you! | Cheryl Carter | 10/04/2018 | $100.00 | See ya at the finish line Bobby! | Michelle Wesline | 10/04/2018 | $25.00 | Go get ‘em Bob!! | David Zaro | 10/04/2018 | $20.00 | Go get em buddy, see you at the start line | Alicia Cole | 10/04/2018 | $30.00 | Cathy Warner | 10/04/2018 | $25.00 | So proud of you, Bobby! I know your parents are, too! | Dan Dunlavy | 10/04/2018 | $20.00 | Good luck buddy! | Anonymous Friend | 10/04/2018 | $100.00 | Such an Angel | Lisa Antonou | 10/04/2018 | $100.00 | So proud of you!!! Xoxo, Lisa | Kris Meekins | 10/04/2018 | $10.00 | Traci Fernandez | 10/03/2018 | $1,000.00 | Anonymous Friend | 10/01/2018 | $10.00 | Bobby, can't wait to watch you crush it again this year! Thank you! |
| Total | $1,965.00 | ||