All of us has the capacity to do good beyond what they believe is possible.

Every one of us has the ability to make an impact.

I have chosen to take on the EBC Climb to Fight Cancer.

Why this Trek?

1. There is an ongoing need for more cancer R&D, we need more mechanisms for early detection, more treatments and more cures.

2. I’ve been following Luke Timmerman for 7 years and his science journalism is an important voice - clear, crisp, and forthright, and Luke's over-the-top "adventure philanthropy" caught my attention and has my enthusiasm. Luke  summited Everest ~4 years ago, led Life Science leaders up Kilimanjaro ~3 years ago, and this past summer completed the Presedential Traverse (White Mtns) with a team of life science professionals for Life Science Cares. Luke has raised millions for Hutch cancer research and other charities. What's next? I'm on Luke's team to trek to Everest Base Camp March 2022 (originally schedule March 2020) to raise $1 million+ for Fred Hutchinson Climb to Fight Cancer.

3. I love adventure, pushing limits. When I was younger, a vacation was not a great vacation unless I was on the edge of risk and thrill!

I’m trekking with the EBC2022 team led by Luke; and I bet I will be huffing and puffing, struggling with the cold and the altitude. My physical struggle will mostly be mental (I can do it, I have to do it, I'll think of “the little train that could”). It will be a time to focus inward and take that energy to send prayers, positive energy and warm wishes to all I know who have been caregivers or suffered through cancer, and to remember those who have passed.

At this moment, I already know that I will be trekking for:

• Safety Partners’ employees (past and current) who have lost loved ones to cancer
• Safety Partners’ past employee, Rigel Lustwerk, who passed in 2014
• My father who passed away July 2021
• My cousin, Debra Grayer Halprin, fought the fight and is doing well
• My aunt Marilyn Aronson, who passed in 2010
• Pascale Richalet, PhD, fought cancer twice – she is strong and healthy!
• Billy Ochsner, my cousin, who we lost to cancer in his early 50’s

 I’m also trekking with all diseases in mind, and especially for my mother with Alzheimer’s and my cousin, David Aronson, who in his 40’s, died from Parkinson’s Disease after a 15-year battle.

I’m truly fortunate to be celebrating this decade of my 60's with a great challenge tied to a great charity. I'm grateful be be in good health, good spirits and able physically and emotionally to take on an adventure. I have an outstanding management team that truly “runs the show” at Safety Partners, leaving me to harvest my energies in new ways; EBC2022 is one! Thank you, Jennifer Reilly and Team, for allowing me to make EBC2022 a reality.

Safety Partners is almost 30 years old! Success is always a combo of luck and hard work. The luck part is that I founded and grew my business alongside the whirlwind of biotech start-up energy in One Kendall Square. It's been a long, and often hard journey. Now its time to smell the roses. I truly appreciation everything Safety Partners has become and all that Safety Partners has afforded me.

Why Hutch?

Fred Hutch has made some of the world’s most important medical advances — from developing bone marrow transplantation as a cure for leukemia, to pioneering powerful therapies that harness the immune system to fight cancer, to leading national and international initiatives that enable earlier cancer diagnoses and more effective treatments. This leading-edge research depends on private contributions that fuel novel studies, which have the power to make a profound difference.

Please click the “Donate” button and give to the Climb to Fight Cancer. Any amount you can give makes a difference to people and families facing deadly diseases. Your gift is 100 percent tax deductible and will fund extraordinary research, lifesaving discoveries, and cures. Thank you for your support!