Inclusion on Display

With our Nation's celebration of independence still in view, I can't get over the after glow of our own KPF celebration of independence. I hope that everyone from sea to shining sea had a beautiful 4th of July. 

Another successful AJC Peachtree Road Race was highlighted by amazing competition as Brent and I pulled our a dramatic thrilling victory. The weather was beautiful  with inclusion being showcased at the world's largest 10K. The competition was fierce throughout the event with several new comers to the Kpeasey team toeing the starting line at the Peachtree this year.

Though never truly about the wins and losses, with a time of just under 38 minutes, Brent and I executed our race plan to perfection with our biggest race of our lives looming ahead in less than 100 days. Sherry Adams and Brandon Clift won the mixed division and Lizzie Kirksey and Rebecca Carpenter took the top prize in the Women's Push Assit Division. This is the second year of Push Assist Divisions at Peachtree. Not only were the races competitive but the Kyle Pease Foundation continued to break down barriers and show  inclusion on full display.

Now we turn our attention to the falls series highlighted by the Marine Corps Marathon, Justin Knight and team at Ironman WI and culminating in the first brother duo in the world to ever compete in the Ironman World Championship at Kona, HI in October. 

I want to thank so many people, but I especially want to thank Shepherd Center and Atlanta Track Club for helping us create the most competitive push assist race we have ever seen.  Sharing a race that I grew up watching with first timers, and long time race veterans is something that I truly enjoy every moment of.  Even that 3:40 am wake up call :0

We will have additional blogs to share focusing on Kona training updates as well as the unveiling of our new book "We Are All Brothers."  Remember that applications for the Jake Vinson Grant are due by August 31 and finally I leave you with this before turning the blog over to my brother.  America was founded for its freedom. Its just so fitting how inclusion, which represents independence at it's finest, was allowed to be on display on the Fourth of July. 

Now onward and upward as I turn it over to my best friend and brother, Brent. 

As we close out on another great Peachtree our focus shifts to our fall events.  We thank you all for being a part of our KPeasey family and helping show others that, "Where there is a wheel, there is a way!"

Kyle and I have been striving for KONA since 2012 and this year we get our first crack at the hardest single day endurance event on the planet. Had we gotten into KONA in 2012/2013, I am not sure we would have been prepared to make the most of this very unique opportunity. While we will be racing together, our  hope is that our racing will create even more opportunities for disabled persons.  Funds raised for KONA will support a new transport vehicle, a new truck, a van scholarship fund and job opportunities for disabled persons.

This was a personal goal of ours to compete in KONA, but now it carries additional meaning and motivation for us. We thank each of you for continuing to support our dream and the goals of KPF.  Join us for one more this year and help make a big difference in the lives of disabled persons.

Before I sign off, we have a world championship challenge for you as we have a donor willing to match up to $10k for donations made in July. It's like our own personal BOGO. For every dollar donated up to 10K we get another dollar absolutely free. 

I would like to close by thanking Matt & Becky (Yoga Works Atlanta) for helping us grow the push assist division and the dollars to support it, Greg & Christy for creating an event that is the catalyst for so many generous gifts and of course the Shepherd Center and the Atlanta Track Club for your incredible support. 

Inclusion Looks The Same but it Sure Sounds Different in DE

Hello Kpeasey Nation-

It is beyond our wildest imagination seeing our little flower continue to take root and blossom. As we see the foundation continue to grow, Brent and I took a little jaunt north to Delaware for a little Bowling with Kpeasey Northern style. The rules are still the same with the goal being to knock down ten pins with two rolls and to spread inclusion far and wide, but those northerners sure do talk funny. As long as they continue to use words like inclusion, kindness, together we wheel and as long as their efforts are met with ear to ear smiles, we will get used to the amusing way those Delawareans speak. 

We brought Tina and Naomi Hicks along with us and we got to see good friends Preston and Deb Buenaga of Preston's March for Energy and participated in our second Fusion Inclusion 5K. It is an example of inclusion at it's finest with dozens of athletes enjoying two laps around Christiana Mall. 

Besides seeing the family who put on the bowling found raiser is was good to spread the message of inclusion that we continue to spread everywhere we go. It is exciting to see the little islands of KPF begin to spread in Atlanta, Delaware and Utah. Fusion Inclusion and Preston's March were gracious hosts as they always are.

In between our trip and recruiting new athletes, Brent and I have been going to different groups  around the Atlanta area to recruit so that KPF can continue to grow and evolve. As we turn the corner into the summer months we are gearing up for the largest 10K in America, the Peachtree Road Race. This year we have have our largest group of participants with ten teams. The teams include Sherry Adams and Brandon Clift, Naomi Hicks and Carrie Smith, Justin Knight and Chris Nasser, Ricardo Aranda and Matt Shechtman, Curtis Ward and Yvonne Leeb, Lizzie Kriskey and Rebecca Carpenter, Katy Freeseman and Krystle Andrews, Bentley Grace Hicks and Fred Soller, Kyleigh Kramlich and Scott Stafford and lastly yours truly with Brent Pease. We are stoked!

We have many events leading up to the Peachtree including our summer gala; a celebration of the Peachtree athletes as well as our summer fundraiser event. I personally am super excited about this because the location is where I did therapeutic horse back riding as a kid. It brings back great memories and it allows me to witness the growth of the Chastian Horse Park which had such an incredible impact on my childhood. The event is being held on June 16.

As this weeks blog comes to a close I encourage all to sign up for the Jake Vinson Family Grant and to look at our website for updated events and latest happenings around the Foundation. 

My Name Is ________________ and I Race with the Kyle Pease Foundation

What's up KPeasey Nation?  Well, we are gearing up for some huge events over the next several months but that doesn't mean we have come down from the emotional and physical high from our amazing race at the Publix Race. I keep replaying the numbers in my head and I'm beginning to feel a bit like John Nash in the movie A Beautiful Mind. Fifty-eight teams of athletes, over two-hundred volunteers, thousands of smiles and thousands of live positively impacted. That's an equation that makes me extremely proud. 
 
Watch and enjoy our video from the Publix Race and I think you'll know what I'm talking about.

Since then we have done several local 5K around the Atlanta community and we are gearing up to travel to Delaware to run the 2nd Annual Fusion Inclusion 5K at Christiana Mall on April 29th. We are excited to see our Delaware friends and family helping to raise awareness and raise funds for the Kyle Pease Foundation. 

As many of you may be aware, our family up in DE started their own version of Bowling with Kpeasey, our fun and exciting fundraising event held every year in November. This year, the Delaware version of the same will be held on April 27 and Brent and I are excited to be in attendance. We are excited to "knock a few down" with Paul, Abbey and the rest of the Delaware contingent.

Brent and I are gearing up for Ironman 70.3 in Raleigh NC to be held on June 3. This will be our first half Ironman event of the season and we are excited to shake off the rust and spend seven or eight quality hours of competition and bonding together.  

Speaking of bonding - this past weekend was the 4th annual Camp Wheel Away where we partnered with Camp Twin Lakes to enjoy a weekend filled with a wide array of inclusive activities. Among my many favorite events that we participate in, CWA is one of my highlights.  This was our largest group of campers to date with 17. It was a great turn out and people really loved the activities. Among my favorite moments was a new activity where campers played with slime. Messy but so much fun.  Another highlight was hearing Ricardo Aranda speaking about what KPF has done to enhance his life. It formed a lump in my throat that still hasn't gone away. 

We are getting ready for the Peach Tree Road Race on July 4 which is of course the largest 10K in the country. We will be stepping to the starting line with our largest group of participants to date. It is exciting to experience the growth and realize the acceptance.

Don't forget to look for our big summer gala and fundraising event at Chastain Horse Park in Atlanta. This was the therapeutic horse park where I first experienced therapeutic riding several years ago. This is sure to be the event of the year (and I got that right from the horses mouth).

Finally, we are taking applications for the Jake Vinson Family Grant. Please visit our website to get information and to apply for this year's award. 

Until next time, watch the video above and post on Facebook - My Name Is ________________ and I Race with the Kyle Pease Foundation. 

Gearing up for Publix with KPF

Wouldn't be a Kyle Pease blog post if I didn't start it off with a top of my lungs shout of "Hello,  K-Peasey Nation!!!

We are gearing up for an absolutely ground breaking event and I can hardly catch my breath because I'm so excited to share the good news. When I started the foundation in 2011, I had lofty goals, but honestly, I never dreamed it would grow to this size. I have spent all of my life dreaming big, but in doing so I also believe in keeping my expectations somewhat real. 

Well, to be perfectly truthful, I never imagined that we would see the day that is soon to come upon us. The Kyle Pease Foundation will have 58 athletes rolling up to the starting line at this year's Publix Half Marathon to be held on Sunday March 18. With over 200 volunteers a virtual sea of Kpeasey blue will be soon throughout the streets of Atlanta. 

We have dreamed of this moment forever and have to pinch ourselves at the realization of this huge accomplishment. There will be countless events leading up to the race including a team dinner to be held with over 300 people in attendance. I'm overwhelmed and just can't wait to experience this momentous event with Brent and all the incredible athletes, volunteers and sponsors who make this all possible. . 

This past weekend we had first race of the year, The Hearts and Soles 5k. It's always nice to dust off the cob webs and embrace a new racing season. This first race had some added significance in that we were gearing up for the qualification for the Peachtree Roadrace.

This year in partnership with the Atlanta Track Club (ATC), we had to qualify for the world's largest 10k. We are super excited to be part of this ground breaking opportunity. Brent and I blazed the trail in 2013 as the first duo team to ever participate in this prestigious event. Now along with ATC. we have seen it grow to nine teams. Congratulations to the Walking with KPeasey AJC Peachtree Road Race qualifiers: Men: Kyle Pease, Justin Knight , Ricardo Aranda.
Women: Naomi Hicks, Katy Freeseman , Lizzie Kirskey. Mixed: Sherry Adams, Bently Grace, Kyliegh Kramlich. #TogetherWeWheel. This is a true life example of being the planters of a single seed, and like farmers nurturing, watering and continuing to work the soil, until our efforts germinate and grow into a precious flower. A virtual garden of inclusion. Thank you to the Peachtree, ATC and all responsible for supporting our message so strongly. 

 Stay tuned for more updates and news as we unveil some new programs and rejuvenate several existing programs as well. We are excited about what 2018 has in store and ready to gear up for everything that comes our way. 

KPF Makes History in "The Grand Daddy of Them All"

The 241st birthday of the United States was historic in more ways than one as nine Push Assist teams, representing the colors of the Kyle Pease Foundation, participated in  the "Grand Daddy of them All", the iconic Peachtree 10K Road Race. 

To take you back through the history of KPF's involvement in the Peachtree, we must take you back in time to the year 2013 when Brent and I made history as the first Push Assist team to participate in this historic race. One year later, race organizers, The Atlanta Track Club (ATC) and the Shepherd Center, granted us a second bib as Brent and I were joined by Justin Knight and Brian Resutek as participants. Now in 2017, through the continued support of both ATC and the Shepherd Center our numbers have blossomed yet again. 

"As we waited to start, Matt of Infinity Yoga, turned to me and said, 'Dude, we have the whole row.' It's amazing to think that in 2013 it was just us. Now it's beyond that. It's bigger than us. It's a collective We and one we are so proud of.  Together WE Wheel!"                                     ~Brent Pease

As I've shared on several occasions, the reason this race is so special to me is because it takes place right in my own backyard on the very streets that I call my home. From the moment the starter's pistol sounds to mark the beginning of the race at Lenox Square Mall to the point where  runners make their way down Peachtree Road, through the streets of Buckhead and Midtown before finishing in beautiful Piedmont Park, the Peachtree can be summed up in four letters...H-O-M-E!

The highlight takes place as we race by the Shepherd Center, where many of the patients line the streets and cheer us on as we make our way past this incredible facility. The Shepherd Center specializes in spinal cord & brain injury rehabilitation along with medical research as the top rehabilitation hospital in the nation, so it is apparent why they cheer on the KPF athletes so feverishly. Another highlight for me is when we whisk by Piedmont Hospital, where I've been employed for many years. Patients, staff and many dear friends come out of the hospital to cheer for Brent and I, as well as our other push assist athletes. My heart swells with pride as we pass both of these top-rated facilities. 

Brent and I finished third in the men's division with a credible time of 39:18. The men's division was won by Ricardo Aranda and Matt Shechtman, while second place was awarded to Justin Knight and George Darren. The push assist women's division was won by Naomi Hicks and Carrie Smith, while the coed division was won by Aiden Jackson and Carmen Brahmin. Winning participants in each of the push assist divisions were awarded  cash prizes by the Kyle Pease Foundation to acknowledge their accomplishment. 

We look forward to next year and the opportunity for KPF athletes to participate in America's Largest 10K. As always, our goal remains spreading the message of inclusion from sea to shining sea. 

Before we blow out the final candle on our country's birthday cake, let me take a moment to remind you to apply for the Jake Vinson Family Grant and to register for Camp Wheel Away. These are two of the highlights of our organization and we hope to make both opportunities available to as many families as possible. 

Until next time-Together We Wheel....