By:Jacky Gerzema
Joe Kennedy remembers waking up one morning and deciding it was the day he would change his life. After 15 years of obesity, he decided it was time to start dieting. Three months later he was ready to begin exercising.
He always liked cycling, Kennedy said, and it became his primary form of exercise both as a means to lose weight and as a recreational activity. Now that he has lost over 80 pounds and is in shape, he is cycling for a cause.
About six years ago, Kennedy's sister Patrice Maio began to feel numbness in her feet and blurred vision. She went to see a doctor. After three years of numerous tests and uncertainty, she was diagnosed with the chronic and sometimes disabling disease of multiple sclerosis when she was 26.
"It was pretty devastating to her and us when this happened," Kennedy said. "The family really pulled together; we help provide her and her daughter with both financial and moral support."
Last year, Kennedy started to bike in multiple sclerosis fundraisers to help raise money for medical research of the disease and to provide service programs benefiting those with MS.
"I realized this was a really good opportunity to both raise money and to heighten awareness about MS," Kennedy said.
With Patrice's help, Kennedy said he raised $15,000 last year in the Long Island MS Tour for a Cure, hosted by the Long Island chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
This year, he will be biking in three MS events including the MS Tour for a Cure, the Great Tappan Zee Ride in southern New York and
the Graylock Challenge in Massachusetts.
Kennedy began a letter writing campaign in the spring and said he has received tremendous results from people. He has already raised over $5,000 through his letters.
Kennedy said as a single mother raising a nine-year-old daughter, Patrice has been through some rough times with MS. Through his involvement with NMSS, he helped Patrice to become more active with volunteering. Kennedy said it gives her something to focus on and gets her outside instead of sitting at home.
This year's MS Tour for a Cure will be held Sept. 9 at Byron Lake Park in Oakdale, New York. The tour is open to all levels of riders and offers three different routes to accommodate every biking level, including the 20, 50 and 100-mile routes. Everyone is invited to participate. The registration fee is $15 per person and $30 for a team of four or more people. All cyclists must raise a minimum of $75 in pledges. To register or learn more about the MS "Tour for a Cure," call (631) 864-8337.
Kennedy asks anyone interested in making contributions and donations to help NMSS, to mail a check made payable to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society to Joe and Carol Kennedy, 3260 Harbor Court, Baldwin, N.Y. 11510.
