Robert Sklar

Contributing Editor

Brooklyn, Mich.

A

s more than 100 Team Alex
cyclists rode into the Heroes
Hurrah Finish Line Celebration
Area at Michigan International Speedway
after their Wish-A-Mile (WAM) tour on
behalf of the Make-A-Wish Foundation
of Michigan, a rainbow pushed aside the
high clouds.
Leading the way onto the MIS track for
the final half-mile of WAM 2012, with
trailing Team Alex members cheering, was
Loren Blumberg of Farmington Hills and
his 8-year-old daughter, Sophie, aboard a
bicycle built for two. Sophie's mom, Mindy,
was second in line on a regular bike.
Team Alex, named for West Bloomfield
teenager Alex Graham who died in January
1999 after battling cancer, had gathered on
July 29 to pedal in together from two miles
outside the Brooklyn raceway.
The rainbow provided a fitting gateway
to the next stage of the journey confront-
ing little Sophie, whose red hair, engaging
brown eyes, upbeat demeanor and smile
for the ages belie her valiant fight against
Familial Dysautonomia, an inherited genet-
ic disorder that affects the development and
function of nerves throughout the body.
At MIS, Sophie awarded most Team Alex
members with their well-earned medals,
signifying their completion of one of the
two certified routes and raising at least the
minimum amount of money for that dis-
tance: $900 for the three days and $300 for
the one day.
"I was so excited to give all the riders
their medals. I can't wait to do it again!"
Sophie said in the euphoria of the finish
line in the shadows of her parents and sis-
ter, Alena, 11.
"WAM is just an incredible event:' Mindy
said. "We just feel so lucky and blessed to
be part of such a wonderful organization as

10

August 16 2012

"Even though I will be
losing something, I will
also be gaining strength
and a hell of a lot of
power. Losing my leg will
be extremely hard for
me, but I know that my
life will still carry on."

- Alex Graham, who died in 1999, wrote this
in her journal April 24,1998, the day before

a cancerous leg was to be removed.

Make-A-Wish and to be surrounded by so
many amazing people:'

Pedal Power
This year, Team Alex had 86 riders who
rode 309 miles over three days from
Traverse City and 24 riders who rode 50
miles the final day out from and back to
MIS. In all, there were about 700 three-
day riders and 200 one-day cyclists.
The Brighton-based Make-A-Wish
Foundation of Michigan grants wishes to
qualifying children with life-threatening
medical conditions. Wish Kids have
various prognoses. Each wish is a gift
for families to rally around. Many Wish
Kids do survive; they and their families
embrace the wish as significant in their
overall treatment.
The Michigan chapter of Make-A-Wish
has an annual budget of more than $6.3
million; 80 cents of every dollar spent
goes toward wish granting. Wishes totaled
more than 400 last year and more than
7,000 since the chapter was founded in
1984.
Sophie is one of Team Alex's two Wish
Kids this year, joining Nate Koomen of
Zeeland.

111"41 `.

Wish Kid Sophie Blumberg with family friend and Team Alex rider Dr. Nancy Cutler

at the Heroes Hurrah Finish Line Celebration

Sophie's Story
Sophie is no stranger to cycling. The third-
grader at Forest Elementary in Farmington
Hills enjoys her bike with training wheels
or the tag-along that attaches to her parents'
bikes. The tag-along was Sophie's choice on
a recent family vacation to Mackinac Island.
Sophie's condition, also called Riley-Day
Syndrome, favors people of Ashkenazi
descent. Symptoms include dry eyes, inabil-
ity to feel pain and temperature changes,
difficulty swallowing and long bouts with
vomiting.
"Fortunately," Mindy said, "the crises
are infrequent, but they can occur several
times a year and require emergency hospi-
tal treatment and even extended hospital
stays."
Sophie undergoes varied therapies.
One of her doctors recommended
Sophie to Make-A-Wish in early 2011.
Apprehensive at first, the family came
around after learning more about the orga-
nization.
The Blumbergs then discovered close
family friends Dr. Nancy Cutler of West
Bloomfield and Dori Leib of Farmington
Hills participate in WAM as part of Team
Alex. So the family attended the final day of

WAM 2011 at the Chelsea Fairgrounds west
of Ann Arbor to cheer riders in.
"It was a fantastic experience,' Loren
recalled. "But for Sophie and the rest of the
family, it wasn't enough. We knew then and
there that in 2012, we would participate in
WAM in a bigger way:'

Alex's Influence
The legacy of Alexandra "Alex" Graham,
daughter of Susie and Bill Graham of West
Bloomfield, proved a big inspiration for
the Blumbergs.
Alex's wish before she died at age 17 in
her senior year at West Bloomfield High
was a public service announcement that
still airs on local TV. In the unique wish,
she and nine other kids with cancer ask
other kids to smile, not stare, at them.
With Bette Midler singing Wind Beneath
My Wings in the background, Alex says:
"It's not our fault we got sick. So please
don't stare at us because we might look a
little different. We're just kids like you.
"We've had enough hurt in our lives
already. So next time you see a kid with
cancer or even someone who looks a little
different, try a smile.
"We could use it:"

