Profile

About: Hello! My name is Melissa and I was born and raised in Houston, Texas. I grew up with two brothers, a sister, and my heroes, the reasons for my continuous motivation, my mom and dad. As I was growing up, my dad had many complications with his health and he had to stop working, so my mom became the head of household. She would spend her days working to support a family of six without a complaint. In April of 2006 my father passed away, but my mom continued to stay strong and keep my family together. This strength is what I admire the most about her. Any obstacle we went through only made us stronger and everything I did from then on, I wanted to do for her and in memory of my father.

I got accepted into the university of my dreams and decided to pursue a degree as a social work major. I have currently been working at the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless for two years and just became a research assistant with the UT Center for Social Work Research. I love improving the lives of others and I know this is my passion, I could never see myself doing anything else.

Why I Ride

I ride for my sister, Whitney. In the fall of 2013 doctors found pre-cancerous cells in her cervix. They said it is possible that in a few years they could develop to become cervical cancer, and that the only thing to do is to wait and have regular checkups. Our family has never been one to show or give affection, we know we love each other, but we aren’t ones who hug every time we see each other, or say I love you every time we hang up the phone. When I got the news from my mom I was in Austin. I cried and cried because I could never imagine losing my sister, the thought of ever losing her broke my heart. My mom said, "you should call her" but I didn't know what to say to her, we aren't used to expressing feelings or emotions. We don’t do hugs, we don’t say “it’s going to be okay”, we just aren’t used to it. There actually weren’t any words to express what I really wanted to say to her. I wanted to tell her I would be by her side for anything, I wanted to let her know how much I do care regardless of how unaffectionate we act towards one another, but the words wouldn't come out of my mouth. This is why I ride, this bike ride is the words I never said to her, it is the feelings I couldn't express. I am riding for my sister because I love her and I don't ever want this disease to take over her life, or anyone else’s.

I ride for my family, I ride for your family, and I ride for you.