Riley Weselowski Completes Marathon for Ryan Christian Love Fund
September 22, 2010 - Central Hockey League (CHL)
Rapid City Rush News Release
(Rapid City, SD) - The Rapid City Rush is proud to announce that defenseman Riley Weselowski participated in and completed his first marathon last Saturday. Weselowski took part in the annual Kroll's Diner Bismarck Marathon in an effort to raise funds for the Ryan Christian Love Fund. Ryan Christian, recently diagnosed with an extremely rare form of cancer, is the daughter of Mississippi RiverKings forward Jeff Christian.
"The run went really well," said Weselowski. "Since it was my first marathon I started out at a pretty comfortable pace for about the first 5 or 6 miles. My sister was running the half marathon and we ran together for the first 8 miles. The training I put in definitely paid off, and as the run went on, I felt stronger and my pace sped quite a bit. It was an amazing feeling crossing the finish line and seeing the sign that read 'congratulations, you are now a marathoner'."
Weselowski finished the 26.2-mile trek in 3 hours 37 minutes and 59 seconds for a pace of 8:20. The Pilot Mound, Manitoba native has already raised hundreds of dollars for the Ryan Christian Love Fund, but plans to continue the drive through the Rush preseason games on October 9th and 10th.
"The response so far has been incredible, and we have had some excellent donations," continued Weselowski. "But I feel like we are just getting started in terms of raising money and getting the word out there. The actual run is over, but I hope to spend the next couple weeks continuing with the fundraising. I strongly encourage anyone who hasn't, to check out the Ryan Christian Love Fund Facebook page. During one of our preseason games, I am hoping to have myself or Daniel Nieves in the stands collecting funds as a final push and finish up with the whole fundraising drive. Like I said before, any little bit helps and any donation is greatly appreciated."
Ryan was diagnosed with pediatric adrenocortical carcinoma after being found unresponsive by her mother, Dorie. She suffered seizures due to extremely high blood pressure for nearly a week before doctors discovered the tumor on her adrenal gland. She underwent a five-hour surgery to remove the tumor, which proved to be malignant. After nearly a month in the hospital in Kansas City, Mo., Ryan started treatment at St. Jude in Memphis, Tenn. Ryan has undergone numerous cycles of chemotherapy and was only recently able to leave St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis.
Information on the Ryan Christian Love Fund can be found on the Facebook page: Ryan Christian Love Fund
If you would like to donate, please make checks payable to the Ryan Christian Love Fund. Donations may be sent to: Rapid City Rush, 444 Mount Rushmore Road N., Rapid City, SD 57701.
For more information on the marathon, visit www.bismarckmarathon.com
Other Rush News:
Now taking reservations for season tickets for the 2010 - 2011 Rush hockey season. For more information, contact the Rush office at 605.716.PUCK (7825) or email tickets@rapidcityrush.com
Stay informed on Rush happenings through the official Rapid City Rush team website, www.RapidCityRush.com.
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