On June 26 my husband and 7 time Ironman Dave Nazaroff will head out of Nyack, NY on a solo bicycle journey to Atlanta, GA. The ride is over 900 miles long and he intends to log nearly 200 miles a day for 5-6 days in the hopes of raising money to help a very special 2 year-old boy he has never met named Tripp. We have named this the Toga Multisport Club "Ride to Give," and here is the story:
Two weeks ago a friend forwarded me the link to a blog kept by the mother of a boy in Atlanta named Tripp Halstead. Tripp was critically injured October 29 while playing outside at his Winder daycare. His skull was shattered by a large heavy falling tree branch and he sustained traumatic brain injury. Over the past 4.5 months he has been in and out of surgery (11 times), battled bacteria, flu, and meningitis. But even though he is still in the hospital, he is a fighter. He keeps battling back. And his parents Stacy and Bill are amazing.
I was so moved by Stacy's blog. It was done as Facebook postings nearly every night and every day. She spoke so openly about Tripp's condition, her emotions, and her need for prayers and well wishes...nothing more. There was humor, memories of Tripp before, and hope for what's to come. Her blog now has over 300,000 followers getting daily updates on his condition. Tripp is their only child.
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When I looked at Tripp's picture I could not believe his resemblance to our 2 year old son George. Same age...blond hair, blue eyes, joyful grin. I couldn't shake the thought, "What if this was George? What if this happened to us?" They are an active, fun family just like we are. I found myself checking my phone many times a day to see how Tripp was doing. There have been so many gains and set backs. But he is young and resilient and there is hope for him to recover. But they are not sure how much. Since the accident he has been unable to walk, talk, eat solid food, or smile.
I felt compelled to help in some way. I thought of a ride Dave took with firefighters after 9/11 and felt the lightbulb go off. If Dave could do 7 Ironman competitions in 4 years, why not a ride to Atlanta? I asked...and he was all for it.
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We want to raise money so Tripp's mom Stacy can continue to stay by his side constantly during his long recovery.
We created a Facebook page and already have 8600 "likes" and have raised $21,000 in the first two weeks of fundraising
You may also donate directly by clicking here:
