Lindsey Gale will carry a photo of Nathan Smith with her during Pelotonia.
Lindsey never met this brave, young man, who lost his battle with cancer in 2004 at the age of 17. Nor has she met his mother, Mary, who took up a collection among her fellow postal workers and recently donated $141 to Lindsey’s Pelotonia fund-raising efforts.
Lindsey received an unexpected donation to her Pelotonia fundraising efforts
Lindsey, Nathan and Mary are now all connected – and part of the ever-growing Pelotonia community and our fight to cure cancer.
This story begins with a Pelotonia yard sign in the Marion, Ohio yard of Allen and Sharon Gale, who are Lindsey’s parents.
This house is on Mary’s mail route and every day she walked by the sign – and every day she thought of Nathan.
Nathan was first diagnosed with a brain tumor when he was 1 – and spent the next few years going through grueling treatments. He was in remission for more than a decade – and then his cancer cruelly returned when he was 14.
“When I saw the sign I knew I had to do something,” Mary said. “The people I work with are amazing and I stood up and gave my spiel and told them all the money goes to cancer research and we’re not going to stop this disease without research and I passed around the envelope and they gave.”
Mary knocked on the Gale’s door a few days later to deliver the money.
“I called to thank her and she is this delightful woman,” Lindsey said. “And she kept saying that I shouldn’t be thanking her, that she wanted to thank me for riding … and then she told me she had lost a son to cancer. I was humbled by this.”
Nathan was an inspiration to his mom and family - and now to Lindsey and the entire Pelotonia family
Mary and her coworkers are also putting together an envelope of photos and mementos of the loved ones they know who are battling or have battled cancer. Lindsey will carry this with her – and honor all these amazing people she has never met.
Lindsey was new to cycling when she rode Pelotonia last year.
“I was so enthused about the event last year,” she said. “My mom is a breast cancer survivor and I have several friends and family who have battled cancer and it’s such a great concept. I went out and bought a bike and trained and it was an amazing experience.”
Lindsey is no stranger to fund raising – and works in this area for the OSU Medical Center.
“There are so many good people in the world,” she said. “And this reaffirms that and is a testament to the concept of grassroots fund raising. You never know what will inspire someone.”
In Mary’s case, it was the sign.
“I saw it and thought, growing up you only knew someone who was a friend of a friend who had cancer and now it’s your spouse or your grandparents or, God forbid, your child. It’s enough, it’s time to end this.”
And research is the way to accomplish this.
“My dream is to one day drive by The James and see a ‘For Sale’ sign up because they cured cancer and have gone out of business,” Mary said.
10 things about Lindsey…
Favorite ride
Pelotonia
Dream ride
Italy
Current Pelotonia bike
Fuji 3.0
Dream bike
I’m not sure yet
Favorite movie
Pretty Woman
Favorite band/singer
Billy Joel
Favorite TV show
Gray’s Anatomy
Favorite book
Eat, Pray, Love
Favorite athlete
Rick Nash
Favorite post-ride meal
A giant Chipotle burrito, chips and guacamole
The Rider 