TD Five Boro Bike Tour

Kenji, on right, at the 2011 Holiday Spin event

Family Reach Ambassador Kenji Freedman is a trainer, friend, champion, advocate, and the inspiration for our entire Reach Athlete series.

Once a teacher and counselor to underprivileged students, now a personal trainer and fitness enthusiast, Kenji Freedman has two passions in life: staying healthy, and helping others. As a volunteer for Family Reach, Kenji has found a way to bring the two together.

Kenji was first introduced to Family Reach through Director of Development and Special Programs Carla Tardif, who spoke with him about the everyday financial burdens families face while struggling to balance the incomparable emotional and financial toll of helping a loved one fight cancer. Having seen the impact first-hand through his own loved ones’ experiences with cancer, Kenji was deeply touched by the stories, and immediately started to think of ways that he could help. He had lost his own father to cancer, and also watched a close friend and mentor, Italian cycling champion Rino Gnesi, lose a battle with pancreatic cancer. As Rino’s condition worsened, Kenji pushed himself to pedal and train even harder, as if riding for two. To this day, he tapes the word “forza” (“strength” in Italian) to his handlebars as inspiration, and to keep his friend’s memory alive.

“My father and Rino, like me, were both passionate not only about fitness, but about the overall well-being of people. There are many fundraisers out there to help find a cure, but the day-to-day challenges of these families are often overlooked,” says Kenji. “The mind, body, and soul are inherently connected, which creates a natural link between fitness and fundraising. I knew I could use fitness as a tool to help build awareness for Family Reach.”

Read Kenji’s full Ambassador profile here.

Samantha, Age 15

No one expected that as an active, athletic teenager, she would be struck by a life-threatening illness. In 2009, Samantha was diagnosed with Stage IV Hodgkin lymphoma. After many days of testing and researching options, Samantha began treatment at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), 65 miles away from her New Jersey home. Chemotherapy lasted nearly seven months. Like so many families coping with cancer, the family felt the intense strain of added expenses. Samantha’s mom needed to go back to work but couldn’t: “I was always at the hospital. You can never leave a child.” Samantha’s dad was working two jobs but “we were already struggling before (the diagnosis). This really put us over the top” he said. “The co-pays, tolls, gas, parking… We let other bills go. We fell behind on a lot.” Family Reach provided two generous grants to assist the family with their mortgage payment and two months of car payments. Their home would not go in to foreclosure and their car would not be repossessed. The family felt safe and could focus on getting Samantha well.