UNBROKEN [27.17]
November 30, 2017
Market: San Francisco
Athlete: Lee Adkins, BlackRock
In 2016 a group of us from BlackRock were asked by my eventual team captain to attend a presentation about something called the D10. My initial thought was “it sounds cool but I need to hear more”. Once I heard the pitch, that it benefited the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital AND that we’d be part of the inaugural San Francisco D10 community I knew I wanted to be part of it. Truthfully, I had ZERO fundraising experience so although the minimum dollar amount looked scary…and that I would be considerably older than the usual D10 suspects I still wanted give it my best effort.
As with anything that makes you uncomfortable it takes getting out of your comfort zone & staying focused on those that will benefit from your efforts to keep you motivated and tackling your fear(s). I do some volunteer work around the Bay Area with other non-profit organizations but having the chance to marry a volunteer/fundraising experience with my athletic abilities seemed like a rare opportunity with a multitude of potential wins that I couldn’t pass up. First and foremost, I get to be a mouthpiece to help raise awareness of the increased need of pediatric cancer research funding for the children & families being affected by the disease. Second, the chance to honor those close to me that have battled cancer at some point in their lives.
For 2016 I represented for the parents of one of my closest friends. Both had battles with cancer and fortunately thanks to the advancements in adult cancer research both were able to pull through, although not unscathed. I trained every day and competed with all of the above in mind. Even though I had a bad case of runner's knee the entire year and pulled my hamstring in the 40 during competition I was not going to stop doing what I could to represent for them. How can I complain about a little temporary pain in light of what they had gone through or are going through!? Third, the chance to hang out and compete with my suave & hardworking teammates Drew Pinson, Henry Ball & Adam Cress. Fourth, an opportunity to motivate those outside of The D10 who might have given up on themselves because of their age, mental health, injuries, position in life, diminishing faith in self, or those who just needed a push to get back to living life.
Lastly, to prove to myself that I can still endure the process of setting tough athletic goals and work hard to achieve them. Fortunately, I've been blessed enough to still be able utilize a few of my athletic abilities/skills so I'm more than honored & proud to lend them to The D10 community in the effort to raise awareness and funding for pediatric cancer research. It's great to achieve for yourself but even sweeter when you can achieve for something bigger than yourself and letting populations know we care.