For 17 years running, the Tri-State Trek has been ALS TDI’s signature event ¬– a three-day, 276-mile bike ride that raises money and awareness for our mission to find effective treatments for ALS. Whether we’re out riding, or cheering on the cyclists, we always try our best to remember who we’re riding for: people whose lives have been affected by ALS.

With this in mind, last year we began offering the opportunity for anyone to “Dedicate a Mile” along the Trek route in honor, or in memory, of a loved one. For a donation of $500, one of the 276 miles along the route through Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut is marked in honor of a family member or friend, for hundreds of riders and volunteers to see.

This opportunity has attracted participants from all over the ALS community, even some from within our own organization. This includes Terri Handler, a development director at ALS TDI who is dedicating a mile in honor of her brother, David.

David passed away from ALS in 2010, a few months before Terri joined the organization. When the Dedicate a Mile program started last year, she immediately decided to make a donation and dedicate mile 18 in his memory. Like many participants, she chose a number that she felt had significance to David’s life.

“I chose the mile 18 because he was born on November 18th, 1960,” she says,
“and November 18th is also the birthday of his two oldest twin daughters.”

At this year’s Trek a sign will appear for David with his picture and a message about his life, to be seen by all the riders and volunteers as they pass by. Terri says it’s incredibly meaningful to see her brother and all the other people being acknowledged, not only for the disease they bravely faced, but also for their accomplishments in life.

“It reminds us of the reality of this disease,” she says, “we know that these people that have lost their lives to ALS, but they have also lived full lives.”

If you’d like to dedicate a mile in honor of someone who has passed on or is living with ALS in your life, you can find more information here: https://fundraise.als.net/dedicateamile

If you’re considering it, it’s something Terri would highly recommend.

“I'm not saying this because I'm a fundraiser with ALS TDI,” she says, candidly, “but because joining the whole Trek crowd for three days, or even just one day, is sometimes a way of healing. It becomes an emotional experience, but it's also so uplifting. I would say if you're interested in dedicating a mile to somebody who is living with ALS or someone who has passed, please do so, and they'll help us reach our goals of finding effective treatments for people living with ALS today.”