Triathlete Vies For Woman Of The Year
By .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
E-mail this story | Print this page | Comments (0) | Archive | RSS | Share
Del.icio.us
|
Avid triathlete Amy Ruth Eck thrives on competition and overcoming the odds, so much so that the Kailua resident dedicates most of her free time to helping others do the same.
But this time around, Eck is reaching out to the public for help with her biggest challenge to date: running for the title of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society 2011 Woman of the Year.
(She is the first person from Hawaii to go after the national honor.)
“I got involved with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society because I want to make a difference,” said Eck, a U.S. Navy port engineer assigned to the USS Lake Erie.
Eck kicked off her campaign, Superheroes for a Cure, March 8 and has until May 20 to reach her goal of raising $50,000 for cancer research. To date she has raised $6,400.
“(The campaign) is an honor to all those people who are heroically fighting cancer and the Superheroes who are donating money to give them knowledge and support in their journey,” she explained, noting she has always been inspired by the large Team In Training presence at local races and “the number of people who rise up to do extraordinary things to honor those in need.”
Among her own everyday “superheroes” Eck counts high school friend Carol Colin, who came up with the name Superheroes for a Cure and has raised more than $40,000 herself for LLS; local kite-boarder Sheldon Plentovich, who remains active in the community after overcoming acute myelogenous leukemia twice; and colleague Nathan Hedden, who currently is in remission after battling a rare form of nonHodgkin’s lymphoma.
“Heroes sometimes wear capes and fly, but sometimes they look like ordinary people who help in extraordinary ways,” Eck said. “What better way to honor the heroic actions of those battling cancer than to join the crusade!”
Monetary donations can be made online at super-heroesforacure.com or by mailing checks made payable to LLS to LSSSuperheroes for a Cure, 30 Aulike St., Suite 406, Kailua, HI 96734. Other ways to help can be found on the Superheroes website.
“We have one life to live,” Eck said, “and in it we need to be doing all we can for others.”
And even after the campaign for Woman of the Year ends next month, Eck plans to remain involved with the local LLS chapter. She and husband Erik David Eck will be sponsoring the annual Freedom Fest Triathlon July 2-3 at Kualoa Ranch, which includes a trail run, mountain bike race, cyclocross race, rough-water swim and XTERRA-qualifying triathlon.
Proceeds will benefit LLS and the American Red Cross. Find out more and sign up at freedomfesthawaii.com.
E-mail this story | Print this page | Comments (0) | Archive | RSS
Most Recent Comment(s):
