The Lexington PMC Kids Ride is looking for a coordinator to lead the ride!
Interested? Email kids@pmc.org
The PMC Kids Rides program, presented by the Yawkey Foundation will be Reimagining "Kids Helping Kids" with the PMC Kids Ride for Pedal Partners!
Join the PMC Kids Rides community on Sunday, September 19, 2021 as we ride for PMC Pedal Partners! The PMC Pedal Partner program, presented by MFS, connects children who are being treated at the Jimmy Fund Clinic with PMC teams, riders and PMC Kids Rides.
While we can’t be together physically this year, your family can get involved in the PMC Kids Rides mission by signing up as Reimagined riders. Kids can ride wherever on September 19th and know that 100% of the money they raise goes directly to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
Please make sure to follow all public health regulations and guidelines for your area, while practicing safe social distancing. See the “Safety” section below for more tips.
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Interested in joining our committee? Email LexingtonPMCKidsRide@gmail.com
Thursday, September 17 – All registered rider families will receive an email with a short video to kick off the weekend. We encourage you to watch it with the whole family.
Friday, September 18 – Sunday, September 20 – Riders ride whenever they can for as long as they want! Be sure to take photos and/or videos of your riders so they can be a part of the Closing Ceremony video we will be creating. Details will be sent to registered riders.
Sunday evening, September 20 – Look for the Closing Ceremony video in your email box!
You can choose your own route for this virtual event – we suggest you adhere to public health guidelines, particularly social distancing guidelines. A lot of fun can be had within your neighborhood! You can create fun loops, set-up your own water station in your yard, and tell your neighbors so they can cheer you on from their porches! We specifically ask that you do not use the traditional Lexington Kids Ride location (Bowman neighborhood) unless you live there - as the streets will not be closed or policed.
Parents will need to create an account or log in with an existing account in order to register their child or family. When creating an account, please enter the parent's information first as there will be a separate part in registration to enter the child's information.
Once registration is complete, parents will receive an email with information on how to log into their management page to customize donation pages and to track donations.
Reimagined rides are not in-person and riders can ride in their own neighborhood on the day of the ride or whenever they'd like! Reimagined riders will receive a PMC Kids Rides water bottle, personalized bike tag, sign and other goodies.
Riders will need to register by September 7 in order to receive their rider kit in the mail prior to September 19. Riders who register after that date will still receive a goodie bag but we cannot guarantee it will arrive by September 19th.
The fundraising minimum for each rider is $40 and is due by October 31, 2021.
Riders who go above and beyond with their fundraising will be recognized as Heavy Hitters or Breakaway Fundraisers and will receive a special gift in recognition of their fundraising efforts in the late Fall.
Fundraising Tips
Fundraising is easy when you have a clear story!
What are you doing? I am riding my bike in the Virtual Lexington PMC Kids Ride the weekend of September 18 - 20. I want to ride my bike XX miles or XX hours!
Why are you doing this? To raise money to help people with cancer. The PMC donates 100% of the money I raise to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute to fund cancer research and cancer care. There are a couple of kids in my town who have cancer and I want to try to help them and others like them. Norah is our Pedal Partner. She has been fighting cancer for four years and her bravery inspires me to ride!
Spread the word!
Click here for more fundraising tips
Click on the buttons below to download fun tools to make your 2020 PMC Kids Rides experience special!
Customize your very own PMC Kids Rides bike tag! Register as a virtual rider and then download the PMC Kids Rides bike tag! Make sure to write your name on the tag and color it in to make it your own! Parents, please cut out the bike tag for your kids and help them fasten it on their bike. We recommend using string or zip-ties to fasten!
Share why you PMC! Everyone participates in a PMC Kids Ride for their own personal reasons - this is your opportunity to share why you PMC. Download the poster and share in a few words "why you PMC". Take a photo with your sign and share on social media or in emails to your donors and supporters.
Donate online or by check. Checks can be made payable to the Pan-Mass Challenge or PMC. Please send all checks to:
PMC Kids Rides
77 4th Ave
Needham, MA 02494
Make sure that the rider's name is listed so they can receive credit!
Please follow all public health regulations and guidelines for your area while biking in your neighborhood. Limit large groups of unrelated bikers.
Since the program has gone virtual, we do not have any physical volunteer opportunities this year. The PMC encourages all volunteers to consider becoming a PMC Virtual Rider to continue our shared commitment to Dana-Farber. You'll need to log in using a PMC account (not a PMC Kids Rides account) to set up your virtual ride.
You can ask that your fundraising be directed towards the Lexington PMC Kids Ride by emailing kids@pmc.org
We are honored to have Norah returning as this year's Lexington PMC Kids Ride Pedal Partner! The PMC Pedal Partner program is a wonderful way for riders to connect with a child who has cancer and bring real meaning to participation in the event. We invite you to read her story below to learn how her bravery inspires us to ride, volunteer and fundraise for this important cause.
Meet Norah
Norah is a 12-year-old who is a rising seventh grader at Diamond Middle School. She loves her friends, fashion, art, reading and her three sisters.
When Norah was 7, her parents noticed that she was limping a bit. What they thought would be a quick trip to the doctor to have her leg checked turned into an ambulance ride to Boston Children’s Hospital where they discovered that Norah had a mass in her brain the size of a tennis ball. Norah underwent immediate brain surgery to remove the mass, but due to its location, only 80% could be removed as the remainder was entwined in her motor cortex. The doctors determined the mass to be the most aggressive type of brain cancer, Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM), which historically has a very low survival rate. At this point, Norah’s parents were given two choices – do nothing and Norah would succumb to the tumor, or resect the remaining tumor and Norah would likely lose motor functioning on the left side of her body. Due to this risk and overall bleak prognosis, every doctor recommended they do nothing.
Nevertheless, Norah’s parents opted to proceed with the second brain surgery to remove the remaining tumor and at the same time. Norah became the sixth child in the world to try an experimental phase 1 trial of an immunotherapy injection at the site of the tumor. Miraculously she emerged from surgery with a successful resection and the ability to move all parts of her body! Since recurrence of the tumor is likely imminent, Dana-Farber has Norah on an aggressive follow up treatment plan that began with 33 treatments of radiation to the brain, weekly chemotherapy, multiple surgeries to place a port and g-tube, stem cell collection, platelet transfusions, red blood cell transfusions, and more. While this process has been grueling for Norah and her family, her most recent MRI shows no evidence of disease!
Norah’s parents truly believe if it were not for the incredible doctors at Dana-Farber, who are the leaders in the world with cancer research and treatment, Norah would not be with us today. Money raised at events such as the Lexington PMC Kids Ride goes to Dana-Farber to fund cancer research.
Thank you Hugh!
A tremendous round of applause for the inspiration that former Pedal Partner, Hugh, has given us over the past three years! Thanks to the amazing support he received from Dana-Farber and the Jimmy Fund Clinic, Hugh is back to being an active boy who loves playing baseball and riding his bike. He will be riding his bike this fall as a “regular rider”!
Remembering Quinn
The Lexington PMC Kids Ride will always be inspired by the memory of our first Pedal Partner, Quinn, who died in July 2016 at the age of 9 after bravely battling a rare form of cancer for 15 months.
Thank you to our 2020 Sponsors and In-Kind Donors!
We are so grateful to the following companies, families and individuals for their incredible support of the Lexington PMC Kids Ride over the years. Their generous donations helped to underwrite past Lexington PMC Kids Rides, and has allowed us to donate 100% of all the dollars raised by the riders to life-saving research and treatment at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. This year, these local businesses need our support. Please bring your business to them and thank them for supporting the Lexington PMC Kids Ride.
Why is the Lexington Kids Ride going virtual this year?
We are adapting our 2020 ride to maintain our commitment to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute while prioritizing the health and safety of our riders and volunteers. Our mission to support Dana-Farber in the fight against cancer is more important than ever. But so is our commitment to the Lexington community. Which is why we are hosting a virtual ride - to come together as a Lexington community and do something good for our body, mind and spirit. As a Virtual Rider, kids can ride their own route or even log miles over the weekend.
Is there a cost to participate in the virtual ride?
No! There is not a cost to participate in the virtual ride. However, we do require that you register. You can do that here.
Is there a fundraising requirement for the virtual ride?
No - there is no fundraising requirement this year, however, we do encourage some fundraising if you are comfortable with it. We understand that these are difficult days for many. But cancer doesn’t stop even during COVID-19. PMC dollars are critical to support the world-class cancer care and additional resources that Dana-Farber Cancer Institute provides patients and their families. 100% of every rider-raised dollar goes to Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
When does the riding take place?
Riding will take place between Friday, Sept 18 and Sunday, Sept 20. You can ride any time during the weekend!
Where is the virtual ride? Is there a pre-determined course?
This is YOUR ride! You can choose your own route for the virtual event—we suggest you adhere to public health guidelines, particularly social distancing guidelines. A lot of fun can be had within your neighborhood! You can create fun loops, set-up your own water station in your yard, and tell your neighbors so they can cheer you on from their porches! We specifically ask that you do not use the traditional Lexington Kids Ride location (Bowman neighborhood) unless you live there - as the streets will not be closed or policed.
What is the distance participants should ride?
It’s up to you! If you are a pre-schooler, one mile might be a good goal. Elementary aged kids might target 5-6 miles while pre-teens might target 10 miles or more. Again, it’s YOUR ride!
My kids don’t ride a two-wheeler yet - can they participate?
Of course! Just like the standard ride, we welcome kids on any wheeled mode of transportation - tricycle, bike with training wheels, a scooter, even Hot Wheels!
Is there an official kick off to the virtual ride?
On Thursday evening, we plan to send all registered rider families an email with a short video to kick off the weekend. We encourage you to watch it with the whole family.
I’m not sure about this - we are going to miss the community feel of the live event!
We GET it and agree with you! It is not going to be the same, but it will be still be great! We have a fun trick up our sleeve which involves you taking some photos and a short video of your kids riding that you send in to us. We’ll compile everything and after the event you and your family will get to see all the riders throughout town coming together in unity. We’ll send more information about this to all registered riders.
Is it safe?
Even the CDC recommends spending time outside getting exercise during the pandemic and riding a bike is one of the best ways to do this! While riding during the Lexington PMC weekend, please be respectful of everyone with whom you are sharing the sidewalks, roads and bike path. And please wear a helmet and maintain at least six feet of distance between you and other people.
Is there a swag bag with a t-shirt, water bottle, and more this year?
No, we are not providing swag bags this year - sorry! We are not soliciting sponsors this year and are not asking for a registration fee.
Will there be prizes for top fundraisers?
Yes! There will be prizes for the top fundraisers that reach All-Star ($100), Heavy Hitter ($400) or Breakaway ($900) status.
Are there still Pedal Partners?
Yes! We are honored to have Norah Weeks returning as this year's Lexington PMC Kids Ride Pedal Partner! The PMC Pedal Partner program is a wonderful way for riders to connect with a child who has cancer and bring real meaning to participation in the event.
Any tips on how to fundraise in the current environment?
We acknowledge it is not an easy environment to fundraise, and we applaud you for recognizing that Dana-Farber’s mission is as vital as ever. A new fundraising feature we are offering this year is the Facebook Fundraiser. More information on this easy and effective form of fundraising can be found here. For other fundraising tips, scroll to the fundraising section of this page. You can also check out these tips here.
