Profile

About: Hey everyone! My name is Kassidy Knight and I’m a Senior studying Computer Engineering here at UT Austin. My mom taught me to love the Longhorns, and my dad sparked my interest in computers. I have had the same best friend since I was born, and she also happens to be my twin sister. We have always been a dynamic duo and together we pick on our “little” brother who has already grown a foot taller than us. My family is an incredible support system, and I am extremely thankful for the life they’ve helped me create.

Though Texas 4000 takes up most of my time, I'm also a member of Delta Gamma sorority and served as President of University Panhellenic Council in 2016. Every person I’ve met at UT has made my experience better, widened my perspective, and shown me what diversity and community mean at a university this size.

I try not to take myself too seriously, because making people laugh is one of my favorite pastimes. Joking around helps to break down barriers and bring people together, that's why I've always loved being the class clown.

After the ride, I'll be returning to the lively city of Austin to work full-time doing Business Technology Consulting for Deloitte. Truth be told, I simply couldn't part ways with the hill country sunsets, live music, and incredible Tex-Mex found here.

I’m thrilled to embark on this journey with my teammates and learn from all the incredible people we will meet along the way. Alaska, we’ll see you soon. Cancer, you’re going down.

Why I Ride

My personal belief is that a full life is one shared with others; people who celebrate your greatest successes and pick you up after your hardest falls. People who fight for you and care for you. People who may not always have the right thing to say, but whose presence speaks louder than words.

My family's first experience with cancer began in 2001, when I was 6 years old. My tall, goofy, caring uncle had been diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma. I was too young to wrap my head around this disease, but I noticed my Uncle getting weaker every time our families visited each other. Instead of putting me on his shoulders, he had to stay away from the germs I brought home from the playground. Eight years after his diagnosis, in 2009, he passed away.

During the first week of my freshman year at UT, in 2013, I lost my grandmother to breast cancer. She was my role model and my angel, and she loved every member of our family without judgment or exceptions. There are days where I still wish I could call her and talk about life, just to hear her encouraging voice.

Though these personal losses were devastating, the real pain came from the gaping hole left in my family. The pain my cousins experienced growing up without their father, who they adored more than anyone in the world. The pain my grandfather experienced losing his soulmate, the person with whom he had shared majority of his life, his best friend.

These experiences taught me a valuable lesson: everyone deserves someone. Whether that person be a family member, a best friend, or a role model, everyone deserves their own champion. Every single day, cancer takes these champions away from us.

I ride to help carry the weight of cancer and advocate for life shared with others. I ride to support those who are currently fighting cancer, or have lost a loved one to cancer. I ride for all of the champions in our lives, so that they are not lost from us too soon.