Megan Love is a freshman at Scripps College. In the summer of 2018, she will be traveling with a group of college-aged students on a 70-day, 4000+ mile ride from Baltimore, MD to San Francisco, CA, raising money and awareness for the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults.

What is your connection to the cancer community?

My first remembrance of trying to grapple with cancer and its implications in our daily lives, relationships and choices was with my mother. Growing up, I have vivid memories of the state my mom was in battling breast cancer, her declining health, the grueling fight with chemo treatments and yet a fearless tenacity throughout. The ways I watched her battle and cling to all possible life and to this day, to see her live as a survivor, has translated into how I live my own life. It has permanently instilled a motivation to spread positive action, hope and give strength to all in despair. More importantly, it has brought my attention to the amount of friends, family members, community members and victims around the globe who have lost their battle with cancer. My connection to the cancer community like most, has come in all forms. From my closest loved ones like my mom, to my uncle, my neighbor, my teacher, and equally important, to my high school's dining hall staff member who put a smile on my face from her daily smiles: there are too many faces and stories to the generalized term "cancer" for me to live without taking a stand to something no one is excluded from. 

Why are you traveling 4,000 miles this summer with the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults?

My interest in embarking on this 4,000 mile journey is an act of beginning my activism, community driven research and an effort to build greater understanding and healing in a nation that is suffering as a whole. I want to spark human connection among the lands across the United States that bind its inhabitants together through common experience. From the individual communities I encounter along the way, to the perspective of crossing through a place using human powered energy, to the community of fellow riders: I want to foster hope in finding a unified approach to dealing with cancer not only on an individual level but in the grand spectrum as well. It will also provide me an opportunity to document some of the many faces to cancer, its implications on our society, and the unity it can create across miles of land and people. I aspire to bridge connections between the broadest range of people who identify in countless ways. Because altogether, cancer's implications add to the richest of thought and discovery of our nation and is the very reason why I am choosing to spend my summer biking across America.

2018 marks the 17th year of the 4K for Cancer sending young adults on journeys across the country in an effort to inspire hope and unite communities in the fight against cancer. The 4K for Cancer is a program of The Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults (UCF). Interested in joining the fight? Apply to be a rider or runner a at www.4kforcancer.org! 

CHALLENGE:

Over 70,000 young adults are diagnosed with cancer every year. Young adults (ages 15-39) face a variety of unique challenges with a cancer diagnosis including fertility preservation, social isolation, lack of insurance, delayed diagnosis, and more. 

SOLUTION:

The Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults changes lives by creating a community of support for young adults, and their loved ones, impacted by cancer. With your support, the Ulman Cancer Fund is able to provide free support services and resources for the young adult cancer community including:

Cancer to 5K - a 12-week training program designed to introduce or reintroduce cancer survivors to physical activity.

Patient Navigation - a free program (onsite at cancer centers and remotely through our office) that ensures no young adult ever faces cancer alone. We provide one-on-one support & resources to young adults and their families to help them manage the cancer experience and long-term cancer survival.

Scholarships - a financial assistance program to help young adults continue their education after being affected by cancer through their own diagnosis or the diagnosis of a loved one.

UCF House - This year UCF broke ground on a “home away from home” to provide free housing for young adult cancer patients, and their caregivers, in East Baltimore. 

Your donation will help make these programs and our mission possible!