Even at age 7, Meghan Collins was able to grasp what participating in the Pan-Massachusetts Challenge to cancer meant to her family.
"You grow up with it in my family," said the Walpole 20-year-old, soon-to-be two-time veteran of the annual fundraising bike-a-thon. "It's been a huge part of our lives."
Or, as her 26-year-old sister, Caitlyn, put it, "In my family, it's not a question of whether or not you will ride in the (challenge), but when you will ride."
It's been that way since 1993, when their uncle, Chris Collins, first recruited their father, Timmy Collins, to hop on a bike to support cancer research and treatment at Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
The bike event comes through Walpole on Sunday, Aug. 3. About 5,500 cyclists will ride through Walpole in the 29th annual event. Beginning at 7:30 a.m. and continuing until 12:10 p.m, the riders will pass through High Plain Street, Old Post Road, Polley Lane, Short Short, East Street, Everett Street, Plimpton Street, Main Street, Fisher Street, North Street and High Street and continue towards Dover.
A diagnosis of colon cancer had spurred Chris Collins to do the ride the year before. So Timmy began riding. Then for three years, Susan Collins - Meghan and Caitlyn's mother - rode, followed by volunteering that continues. Four years ago, Caitlyn joined the effort. Last year, Meghan, too, figured she should start fundraising and bike-riding to eradicate cancer.
"It felt like the right time," she said.
For her father, Timmy, the right time came when Uncle Chris tapped his younger brother on the shoulder and asked him to join him in riding 163 miles.
A few years later, Uncle Chris couldn't ride anymore because of the cancer. Instead, he encouraged Timmy from the passenger-side front seat of a mini-van. Timmy's response? He good-naturedly chucked a water bottle at his older brother and pedaled harder.
Timmy Collins' philosophy about participating in the Pan-Mass Challenge is simple: "Give until it hurts."
Fundraising for the annual bike-a-thon can be difficult, said the 51-year-old Orchard Street resident. So, too, can the ride itself: 163 sometimes hilly miles over two days. Even the preliminary training can be hard, Collins added, because he's not as young as he once was.
But all that "struggle" goes away when he gets on the bike.
"The pain is nothing like the pain of watching a loved one die from cancer," he said.
Chris Collins died in 1998. From then on, the family considered it their job "to carry on (his) legacy," said Susan. Timmy agreed with his wife. He quoted a friend of his: "If you can't carry the flag, get out of the parade."
"I think about him every day," Meghan said. "It's definitely a legacy. We hold him dear."
Tim, Caitlyn and Meghan Collins will ride as part of Team Maureen and Kenny's Crew (Susan Collins will volunteer at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy at Buzzards Bay, where riders will conclude their day-one rides).
The team formed in 2005 to support family friends Maureen Riedy and Kenny Cavanaugh as they battled cancer.
"We wanted to show them our love and support and to also aid in finding a cure for cancer," the Collinses wrote in a fundraising letter. Riedy died from a brain tumor in June 2007. Cavanuagh died from esophageal cancer on April 20.
The letter continued: "In closing, please pray for good weather for the PMC weekend, a safe ride, and for Kenny and Maureen. Though our hearts are heavy may our bike pedals be light and may every hill be one hill closer to finding a cure for cancer."
The Collins family will be among 46 Walpole residents participating in the Aug. 2-3 event. The others include: Edward Ryan, Douglas Brum, John Bruno, Lisa Morrissey, Robert Morrissey, Neal Fisher, Bernard Brady, David Brauer, Molly Grimes, Thomas Grimes, Caroline Russell, Robert Russell, Robert Smith, Ken Wheeler, Linda Pantaleo, Chris Akeley, Patricia Brown, Bob Buckley, John Burke, Peter Burke, Brian Donegan, Diana Dorci, Joseph Doyle, Jim Egan, Aimee-Lee Gagne, Kristen Graham, David Harrington, Kerin Horgan, Shawn Horgan, John Kavolius, Kelly Kelliher, Stephen LaPlante, Matt McGuill, Paul Millette, Debra O'Brien, Stacey O'Connell, Paul Rockwood, Michael Rogers, Edward Shaw, Paul Smith, Rich Sneider, Walter Stone, and David Thornton.
Jeb Bobseine can be reached at jeb@walpoletimes.com or 508-668-0243, ext. 13.
