Pre Ride (3 days to the "Start")

Dear Friends and Family,

As we were about to jump on the plane to San Francisco for our adventure we thought it would be appropriate to thank those who have been so supportive. First, there are those of you who have been so kind as to contribute to Child and Family Services and Nardin Academy. Your generosity means a great deal to us.

We also want to thank those at our places of work who have been so much help.
When Amy interviewed for her new position at the James H. Cummings Foundation, she told Bill Joyce, the Executive Director, of her plans for the bike trip. Bill was wonderful. He offered Amy the position as his Executive Assistant knowing that after only four months on the job, Amy would be gone for almost two months. He has been encouraging and excited for Amy and has made all the difference to her. He will never know how much his support and encouragement means to her.

John wants to particularly thank Sharon Wick who kept encouraging him to take this trip of a lifetime. She did this knowing that her workload would exponentially increase during John's absence from the office. For years she has been telling John to just go and do it. She will never know how grateful John is for her support. The rest of the Department has been wonderful as well. Holly, David, Fran, Kathy, Kim, Michele and Leanne have all put up with John's chatter about the trip and been willing to take on extra responsibilities. Finally, but certainly not lastly, Phillips Lytle, the Firm, has been terrific. Morgan Graham, the Managing Partner when John suggested the idea, Dave McNamara, the current Managing Partner, the Governing Committee and any number of John's partners, associates and staff have all been encouraging and excited for John.

Finally, we need to thank our daughter, Meg, and our son, Ed, and his family, Meredith, our wonderful daughter-in-law, and their three great kids. Meg has undertaken to watch over the house like a mother hen, pay our bills, take out our garbage and whatever comes up during our absence. Ed and Mere have been encouraging and supportive and most importantly excited for us, which makes all the difference.

And so, friends and family off we go. Who knows how we'll do. All we can do is try. We'll be thinking of you.
Amy and John