So it begins

I guess some introductions are in order.  As mentioned in the "about me" section of this blog I am senior in college.  "What are you doing after college?" is the question that every student dreads and yet hears it every day and never seems to have the "right" answer.  Well at least for this coming summer after I graduate I have a relatively concrete answer.  As the title of this web page suggests, I will be participating in the 2009 Journey of Hope.  Mounted on the back of a bicycle I will ride 4000miles from either San Francisco, California, or Seattle, Washington, across the country to Washington, DC.  I will join around 84 other men in this endeavor.  Along the way my team will raise awareness for people with disabilities through construction projects and friendship visits at local organizations that serve people with disabilities at places we stop along the way.

The Journey of Hope is an annual event sponsored by Pi Kappa Phi fraternity and its national philanthropy, Push America.  I joined Pi Kappa Phi in the spring of my sophomore year in college because it offered something that most college fraternities do not.  The brothers of Pi Kappa Phi seek to build better men through defying the negative stereotypes of college fraternities by being leaders in the community through service and action.  Push America was founded by brothers of Pi Kappa Phi to establish a national organization through which to serve.  Push America supports people with disabilities by stressing the importance of teamwork, abilities, empathy, and integrity and also by promoting "people first" language which stresses the fact the people with disabilities are first and foremost people and that their disability is a secondary fact.  The Journey of Hope raises thousands of dollars annually to support this cause through donations raised by the riders.  For more information on the ride and to sponsor me visit my fundraising profile.

This Blog will serve as a training/ fundraising log as well as my primary means of communication with friends and family from the road.  I will try and update journal entries as much as possible when I get on the road come June.