Dear Family and Friends,
In a few weeks, I will be joining thousands of other riders in pedaling over 150 miles over two days in the mountains of Colorado. The Courage Classic is one of Children Hospital Colorado’s most important annual events, not just as a fundraiser but as an opportunity for riders to show some grit in solidarity with the patients we serve.
This year will be my first ride since 2005 - summers have been busy with coaching baseball but the boys have graduated from that! This spring and summer, I have been able to get on the bike again.
I have had the honor of serving as the Chief Medical Officer at Children’s for five years. It’s an incredible place - last year we took care of over 300,000 unique kids, performed close to 30,000 surgeries - we are the only comprehensive kids’ hospital in the Rocky Mountain Region and one of the largest pediatric hospitals in the nation.
A few weekends ago, I was in central Wyoming and had a chance to meet a man who is in his late twenties and works as a cowboy on a large cattle ranch. When he was 13 and an aspiring bull rider, he was thrown to the ground and the bull stepped on his face, shattering his jaw. He underwent six surgeries at Children’s to repair the complex fractures. When I met him, I couldn’t detect any residual problems from the injuries and he got emotional in gratitude for the care he had received.
This story was a great example of how important our hospital is to kids from such a huge distance and the life-changing and restorative impact our doctors and nurses have, every day.
Please consider a contribution to support our hospital and fund my ride!
thanks,
David
