Dear Family and Friends, As a member of the Lance Armstrong Peloton Project, I am dedicated to raising funds and awareness for the Foundation and their mission of helping people manage and survive cancer. I am certain that with your support there will be more survivors around to tell their tales, like Lance and myself, in the very near future. By now, you may be aware of Lance Armstrong's inspiring story. Diagnosed at age 25 with testicular cancer, Lance was given a less than fifty percent chance to live. The world-class cyclist faced enormous odds and uncertainty about his future, but from the moment of his diagnosis he declared himself a cancer survivor, not a cancer victim. He took an active role in educating himself about his disease. Armed with knowledge and confidence in medicine, he underwent aggressive treatment and beat the cancer. In 1999, the world witnessed one of the greatest comebacks in sports history when Lance won the Tour de France. In winning his third consecutive Tour victory in 2001, he again proved his superior strength?both as a cyclist and a cancer survivor. Lance's three-week battle to win the Tour in 1999 happened not too long after I had been diagnosed and treated for Follicular Thyroid cancer. This type of thyroid cancer it is typically found in women over the age of fifty, not 26-year-old men. To say the least, finding out that I was the exception did not help me in dealing with the fact that I had cancer. What did help was knowing that Lance had survived testicular, lung and brain cancer, and had returned to professional cycling. The fact that he returned to cycling at all showed an incredible amount of courage and provided strength, determination and hope for cancer patients around the globe. Winning the Tour in 1999 was just icing on the cake and brought forth the realization that people can survive cancer and get back to doing what they do best and in Lance's case, even better. With your support in 1999, nearly 10 months after Lance's 1st Tour victory, I raised over $6,800.00 and had the privilege to participate in the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF) 2000 Ride for the Roses (RftR's) weekend. In the fall of 2000 I registered to fund raise again for the 2001 RftR's weekend, but lost sight of my responsibility as a cancer survivor and raised only $75.00, or the equivalent to the cost of the fund raising packet that year. I was in denial of being part of the cancer community and absolved myself of my duties as a cancer survivor. Part of my denial went as far as blatantly forgetting to take my daily thyroid replacement pill for days at a time. I quickly learned that cancer does not go away because you successfully fund raised for a cancer foundation or because you forget to take your pill. This year, with the loss of my friends father and a close family member joining me a s a survivor, I was reminded that regardless of how far cancer awareness, prevention, research, and treatment has come in recent years, we still have along way to go. The 1:1 death to survivor ratio is not acceptable when dealing with this deadly disease so I am happy to announce that I am back in full fund raising mode and back to taking my medication regularly (although some might wonder if I am on the right medication?). With your help my goal is to contribute no less than $13,600.00, or double the amount I raised in 1999 for the Lance Armstrong foundation and its endeavors. The goal of the Lance Armstrong Foundation, simply stated, is to change the world for the millions of people whose lives are impacted by cancer. The LAF wants to reduce the presence of cancer on this planet; continue to define, refine and improve cancer survivor services; and facilitate the delivery of those services?and a large dose of hope?to the patients, their families, and other loved ones touched by the disease. It's a tall order, but an organization that bears the name of the man who came back from cancer to win three consecutive Tour de France victories can aim for nothing less. Now, I am asking you to join me as I help the Lance Armstrong Foundation in their fight against cancer. You can make an instant and secure online donation on the Foundation's website by going to this URL or if you prefer, please send a check made out to the Lance Armstrong Foundation to: Matthew LeVeque 85 Antrim Street Cambridge, MA 02139 If you have any questions, please contact me at (617) 319-5432 or the Lance Armstrong Foundation at (512) 236-8820, or visit the LAF website, to find out more about the Foundation and the great cause your donation supports. Thank you for joining our efforts? you may not realize it now, but you are about to take one step closer in helping save the life of someone you love, and possibly your own. Sincerely, Matt LeVeque