I’m sorry, I’ve been slacking off lately – I haven’t felt like my perky self and it may be side effects, or long term effects of some of the medications. My lungs are still amazing, and they always will be – and I still think about the girl who gave them to me constantly. I can still leap tall buildings. But some other things are a little slower, mentally and physically. The doc says something about being 50 years old. I’m not buying it – that’s not for 7 months. Anyhoo…
A few weeks ago, at the Chicago Triathlon, I got to hang with a group of guys and chicks who I think totally rock… And I got to spend some time with Ted & Bethany, who also totally rock… I’ve spent time with them before – I wrote about them before in posts titled, “Swim, Bike, Run, Chase…” and “Buck & Nancy’s boys, Chase’s brothers…” Each time I hang with them, I meet someone new, and being with them re-confirms how special they are…
They are the Tri-for-Life triathlon team, and they do what they do to honor their brother, Chase, and to spread the word about organ and tissue donation. Six years ago, Chase passed away. They tell me donating Chase’s organs was a no-brainer – he’d let them know how he felt… But more than that, he was always all about helping others.
They brought their Mom, Nancy, and Aunt Bonnie along with them… While their boys were getting ready for the event, one of the things their Mom & Aunt Bonnie wanted to do was check out “The Ledge” on the Sears Tower (Willis Tower – whatever…) Ironically, I’ve been wanting to check that out myself for months and I had two free tickets from one of our past climbs there! I took this picture of them on the ledge… And though I tried to grab the tab – they bought me breakfast afterwards… And they told me more stories about Chase – about who he was, and how he treated others…
When I hear any of them talking about Chase, I think about Kari too. I know they weren’t always the angels that some of us make them out to be – I know they were not perfect. But I also know that they were truly good people. They were surrounded by incredible love, and many, many friends. His family knows some of Chase’s recipients – they are very close to his heart recipient, Terry. I’ve met Kari’s family – I know how special they are, and I’ve met and adore many of her friends – and I’ve met the beautiful lady who has her heart. The gifts any of us receive are driven by a love for other people, and an appreciation of life, and by goodness and kindness.
This is Brandon – when he showed us his swim cap, I know I started to well up… He told Laura that from the moment he got up, he did not want to do this swim – he told her that the minute he saw us, his feelings changed and he wanted do it… He said that with all we’ve been though with my illness and waiting for lungs, this swim and this event was nothing in comparison – I see it from a different angle – I see all they’ve been through, yet they’re still fighting for people like me…
During the event, I only got pictures of them getting ready to swim. I’d like to tell you that my camera broke, or I ran out of batteries after the swim, but the group shots afterwards would kinda blow that explanation. And I didn’t even get a picture of Cindy because every time someone hollered, “There’s Cindy!!!” I only saw the back of her head running away… (Don’t even try to associate any meaning with that…)
Bethany – she’s Ted’s squeeze – she’s not part of the Tri-for-Life team… I’ll say she’s representing the My Angel Foundation and Revive Hope contingent…
Dave
Trevor
Lon
Brandon
This is me with Cindy – I just met her at this event, but I know I’ll see her again! Cindy is a perfect match for this team… We had a couple of wonderful talks about how she got into running. She decided she needed a cause and took up the Ronald McDonald house for a while because of a friend who was helped by the organization… Then she met Lon, Trevor and Brandon. She volunteered and helped them out for a while. Soon, they invited her to be a team member. Cindy has her own blog at RunnerGirlBlog.com It’s easy to see her passion for promoting organ donation – this is what she wrote about joining their team:
As many of you know I recently became a member of a pretty fantastic team. We tri….we don’t just tri for the competition, we don’t just tri for the camaraderie. We tri because as a team we are coming together to further a beautiful and amazing cause. We tri for a purpose. We tri because 6 years ago a family lost their son and brother, and six years ago those brave family members made a decision to not allow Chase’s legacy to end there. The Coleman family donated Chase’s organs and as a result lives were saved. Though extremely tragic, unspeakable, surely an experience that words cannot accurately explain a single family saved many more. So we tri….we tri to honor Chase, to bring awareness, to offer opportunities. I am proud to be part of a team that believes in something bigger. We are more then just athletes trying to win a race or break a personal record when we are out there. We are a team, a very close team of individuals believing that collectively, we can and will make a difference.
She’s right – they can and will make a difference… Just like Chase & Kari did…
