Kevin O’Brien is among more than 1,000 Washingtonians who are donning helmets, lacing up their shoes, and hopping on their bikes for a long journey.
This is O’Brien’s third year riding in the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Bike Ride, and he’s as energetic as ever about raising money to help cure a disease that affects 2.5 million people worldwide. One of those afflicted is his wife Nancy.
“I want a cure for my best friend and wife, but I’m also riding on my kids’ behalf, as it’s a genetic disease,” Kevin said.
The O’Briens moved to Orcas in 2006 from West Seattle with their three boys: Keenan, 12, Daniel, 10, and Colin, six. Kevin, who is a firefighter, grew up on Orcas, and knew he eventually wanted to return to the island to raise his children. Just a few months after they arrived on Orcas, Nancy was diagnosed with MS.
“We’ve been completely open with our kids since day one of her diagnosis,” Kevin said. “That first year was the most difficult one of our lives. We didn’t know what to expect. But the boys were incredible.”
MS is known as the “snowflake” disease, as it affects every patient differently. Some only suffer from fatigue, blurred vision, and occasional flareups. Others are hit much harder, and spend their life in a wheelchair. Kevin says Nancy is lucky – her daily injection of medicine helps, and if she gets enough sleep, stays fit, and eats well, she is able to manage her condition. But when she has a flare-up, she has numbness in her hands, heavy legs, and is extremely tired. Nancy taught elementary school for 10 years in the Sumner and Shoreline school districts, and she hopes to do some substitute teaching this year on Orcas. To stay fit, Nancy walks around Mountain and Cascade Lakes, and in the winter, the O’Briens ski.
“While she’s lucky now, we have to watch it,” Kevin said. “It can get worse. We’re in a race for time – her and everyone else.”
Kevin is doing his part to win that race. In 2007, the first year he participated in the MS bike ride, he raised $10,000. This year he is hoping for that same amount, but says he is “happy with the $1850 I’ve raised so far.”
Kevin joined the “Swedish Smyelin Babes” at the suggestion of Nancy’s neurologist, Lily Jung, who is also on the team. He recruited co-workers from the Valley Regional Fire Authority in Auburn, where he is a firefighter and captain. He even has some Orcas teammates: Randy Gaylord and Suzanne Olson. This year, the Babes have around 40 team members, and are leading the “friends and family” donation category with $25,732.
The ride is Sept. 12-13 and is based out of Mount Vernon in the Skagit County Fairgrounds, where Nancy will help out at the team’s tent.
The route heads west through LaConner on the first day, across the Deception Pass bridge, into Whidbey, through Coupville, and then back to the fairgrounds. Day two heads north through Skagit Valley, along the east side of Chuckanut Drive, and then back through the valley. Bicyclists can choose a 25-mile, 50-mile, or 100-mile excursion, and they can participate for both days, or just one.
“It’s an absolutely beautiful ride,” Kevin said. “They do a great job of managing the bike course.
Motorcycle clubs help out with the traffic.”
For Kevin, the most challenging part is fundraising.
“I feel awkward asking people for money,” he said. “But these grassroots events raise a lot. And donating money means more research is done for curing MS.”
While the bike ride is raising money for a devastating disease, the tone of the event is joyous, says Kevin.
“Like the three-day cancer walk, it’s uplifting and positive,” he said. “Last year I rode next to a man who suffered from MS. He was bed-ridden a few years before, but with therapy, fitness, and diet, he rallied around and was now riding. I couldn’t believe it.”
What is MS?
Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system, which is made up of the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves. Symptoms may be mild, such as numbness in the limbs, or severe, such as paralysis or loss of vision. The progress, severity, and specific symptoms of MS are unpredictable and vary from one person to another.
To donate or join the team
Kevin would love to have people join him on the ride; email kevinkobrien@msn.com.
To donate, send a check to P.O. Box 1722 Eastsound, WA 98245 made out to the National M.S. Society or online to donate at http://www.nationalmssociety.org/bikems2009.
Click on “Find a Rider” from the left task bar. Check “Search a Participant.” Type in Kevin O’Brien and click “Find a Participant.” Scroll down and click on the name “Kevin O’Brien” of the Swedish Smyelin Babes.
