About Me

Profile

About:


Hey. I'm Shea.

Just some basics about me:
I was born and raised by my wonderful parents in the little, country town of Wharton, TX. Growing up there allowed me to have many opportunities I may not have had in a larger community and gave me the chance to really get to know most of the people I went to school with. Although I wouldn't trade those things for anything, living in a small town also gave me the desire to go out and see what else the world had to offer. Currently, I'm loving my life in Austin. I am in my senior year at UT. I'm an Advertising major turned pre-occupational therapy and hope to attend grad school for OT after graduation. Outside of class, I'm in a couple organizations, have a job that I love, and friends I adore. I guess if I'm laying out a timeline, in the future, I hope to work as a pediatric OT in a children's clinic. Ultimately, outside of my career, I want to be able to offer non-traditional therapy services that allow me to teach kids skills that I'm passionate about, such as swimming, dancing, and painting.

Some not so basic things:
I have been known to indulge in an entire jar of peanut butter. I'm not a huge fan of hugs, but the thought of hugging a panda bear sounds rather enjoyable. I like to think that I'm very optimistic and willing to try anything. My brain has an amazing capacity for song lyrics. The two things I must do before I die, besides ride a bike to Alaska to help fight cancer, are learn to surf and play guitar. Prior to T4K, I hadn't ridden a bike since I was 10, but I am now obsessed with cycling.

Like you, I hate cancer. And I hope like you, I'm doing something about it.

Why I Ride

If I were to compile a list of all of my friends and family members who have had friends or family members battle with cancer, I’m pretty sure it would be long enough to dedicate every mile of this ride to a different person. Cancer is something that is becoming more prevalent in our world everyday and affects so many people in addition to those diagnosed with it. Although I have been fortunate enough in my life to have never lost a close friend or family member to this disease, I have witnessed the desperation and fear in some of my friends when they receive news about their dad, grandpa, or cousin having cancer. It spreads an overwhelming feeling of hopelessness and makes people question every aspect of their life and what they could have done differently to prevent having this horrible disease. It seems like everyday new research comes out designating something else as playing a role in causing cancer. Our fear of this disease affects the things we do, how we eat, and where we go. With a cure for cancer, we will no longer have to live in fear of losing a family member or friend to cancer or whether or not our own actions could cause us to develop this disease. I believe that the day that fear will subside is in the very near future and people will no longer have to give up parts of their lives as an effort to control this awful disease. In the mean time, we need to spread knowledge of ways to prevent it, education in how people can help, and most of all, hope to all of those struggling to beat it or know someone personally who is. I want to ride so that I can show everyone that no matter where you come from or how you are connected to cancer, you can help and in the end, we can win.