Wish A Mile

On Sunday we met my dad at the finish line in Chelsea, Mi. My brother (who wasn't able to ride this year) and SIL and their 2 kids went with us because my SIL's dad and sister also ride.

The kids made signs and were very proud of them. They wouldn't let anyone hold them for them.

They were coming in fast so I got one quick (blurry) shot off of my dad which I thought was neat because it had the finish line sign in the background.

After the ride, each team meets with the child that they raised money for and are each presented with a medal. This is my dad receiving his metal from Curtis.

After pictures we all headed to the food building to eat. The event was catered by Carabah's restaurant with some yummy food. They had loads of stuff for kids to do and lots of fun little freebies for the kids. Lots of fun for the families.

This is a picture I took of a man named Kevin as he finished the ride. I think this is his 5th ride for Make A Wish and he is amazing. I am not sure of his age, but he is disabled.He completes all 300 miles on his bike with only the use of one arm and one leg. What an inspiration! He got a huge welcome at the finish line and was also honored the night before at an awards ceremony that the bikers had at one of their stops.

Some interesting things I learned about this fund raiser. It was actually started 20 years ago by two men from my home town of Canton. They had bet each other that they could ride from Canton, Mi to Mackinaw, Mi. The decided if they were going to do it they wanted it to have a purpose and Wish A Mile was born. Their goal this year was to raise a million dollars. They succeeded that goal with $1,340, 995.00 and was able to grant 167 wishes!!! WAY TO GO RIDERS!! The oldest rider was 74 and the youngest was 12. Amazing.

And as I have said before, I am so proud of my dad and so happy for him for being able to ride all 300 miles! I know he was very nervous about this journey. 5 Years ago this would have been an impossible task for him as he weighed over 300 pounds and suffered a heart attack just a couple years before that. During the ride he carried a picture of himself at his heaviest and a picture of Curtis, the boy he was riding for. If he was struggling he had the pictures to remind him of what he had achieved and why he needed to push on. He is already looking forward to next years ride!