My granny battled cancer for as long as I could remember when I was a kid. She beat colon cancer only to succumb to melanoma. Just after my cousin's 3rd birthday he was diagnosed with Acute Lymphatic Leukemia and died within months of my granny.

Since I first sent in my application for the Texas 4000 last July, I've had 4 friends diagnosed with cancer, and my sense of urgency that we need to find a cure for this disease has intensified. The Texas 4000 is my way of helping to curtail the effects of this disease and bring hope and inspiration to people dealing with it, personally or otherwise--although, I have the feeling that along the way I'll be the one gaining inspiration from them.