There was no way I could have ever prepared for that news and everything that followed it. Being diagnosed with Stage 4 Endometrial cancer at age 37 takes your breath away, your time away. The only thing I could do was react and learn everything I possibly could about what was happening to me and what I needed to do to get to the other side. I wanted to take control of the uncontrollable and knock it out as quickly as possible so I could get back to life, or some version of it. It was me against this thing, until a very dear friend told me I didn't have to do it alone or without help. I had no idea what saying "yes" to her offer would mean at the time, but it changed everything. Thanks to Janel, I became a Nosco recipient and immediately experienced a level of support, kindness, and generosity I never knew I could be lucky enough to receive. It was very humbling to know that this community had my back and that they wanted to see me through it all.
The impact of this event doesn't stop when the ride is over, at least it didn't for me, it has been with me every day since and will continue to be for the rest of my life. I am forever grateful to Janel, Jack, the Nosco Foundation, and the many riders that showed up to let me know, we don't have to go through hard things alone.