WHY I RIDE - BRAEDEN CHRIS Hi, Im Braeden Chris. I got involved with the Tour de Cure - Wichita in March of 2012. In April of 2012, I was diagnosed as a Type 2 diabetic. I was Captain of Team Red in 2013, and this year I am co-captain. I can remember being very young and not understanding why my grandfather was so sick. I didnt know why he had many amputations involving both his legs. I didnt understand why he was confined to a wheel chair. I can remember being asked to leave the room while he got shots. I can remember helpin to heat his I.V. bags in the microwave. I remember in 2nd grade, it was grandparents day at school. I was so happy they were both there, but I also remember my grandmother having to wheel him to the bathroom so he could get his shots, so he could use the restroom. I remember being sad because they couldnt sit next to me for the whole day uninterrupted like the other kids grandparents did. I remember when he died, I was 8. He was 52. He died from complications of diabetes. He had kidney cancer, had a minimum of 5 amputations, he was nearly blind, and he was very weak. When he died, I was angry, I was hurt-my best friend had just been ripped away from me! It was only a few years ago I was finally able to understand the severity of what he was going thru - Diabetes. I vowed to myself and to the world when he died, that I would grow up and do what I could to help stop this horrible disease from taking anyone else away from me. It was just the 31st anniversary of my grandfather passing in January. It doesnt get any easier for me as the years tick by. In June of 2013, just less than a month after Tour de Cure, my Aunt passed away, complications from her Type 1 diabetes. Again, diabetes had just taken another family member away from me. It helps tho, being involved with the American Diabetes Association. Knowing that in some small way, that I am helping to find a way to put this disease to an end. To put a stop to the many needless deaths this disease is causing. I ride in memory of my grandfather, and now in memory of my aunt. I ride for my health. I ride for my relatives, my friends, and the people I have yet to meet who also have diabetes. THIS is why I ride. #whyiride #goredrider --- Share your story. Whether youre a rider in the Family Ride, a volunteer or a sponsor, we want to know why you ride. Use the hashtag #whyiride, share it on our timeline, tweet it or email it to us at adamarketingwichita@gmail.
Posted on: Fri, 14 Mar 2014 16:00:02 +0000
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