My name is Dave Hanna, and I’m thrilled to be participating as a Buddy Runner for the Sam Day Foundation! This is my second Foundation run, and I’m looking forward to fighting for such a worthy, courageous, and committed community. While running is probably my favorite discipline, I consider myself first and foremost a triathlete, having competed and finished races at the Olympic, half-Ironman and full-course Ironman levels. I enjoy completing long-distance courses, and if I can combine that passion with the amazing opportunity to encourage exercise and bring awareness to the work of the Foundation, I’m excited to do so! See you out there.
I am running in memory of Elijah.
A note from Elijah's parents:
Elijah was a quiet and caring person with a quick wit and dry sense of humor. You never quite knew what he was thinking about until he would say something incredibly profound or hilariously funny. He knew he wanted to be an engineer from a very young age. He loved to understand how things worked and was always taking things apart. He bought himself a 3D printer at age 12 and would eventually upgrade to ever more technical models. We often joked about Elijah being an old soul because he loved polished rocks, board games, going to bed early, and absolute control of the TV remote. He was thoughtful and kind. Often doing things others enjoyed just because he knew they did. He had a sweet smile that conveyed a thousand unspoken words.
Elijah was diagnosed with medulloblastoma brain cancer at age 12. The surgery left him with loss of function in his right side, poor vision, and slow speech. Chemo and radiation left him with a permanent eating disorder due to prolonged nausea and vomiting. He would require tube feedings and countless hours of rehabilitation over a 2-year period of time to learn to eat, walk, talk, and see again. He would never be the same carefree, rough and tumble boy but he found knew interests as he healed. After 4.5 years of being cancer free and nearly to survivorship, Elijah began to have difficulty speaking and walking. Within a few short days he was diagnosed with a radiation induced glioma brain tumor, an incredibly aggressive type of cancer with no treatment options. The tumor had completely grown back within just a few weeks of its removal. Elijah passed away just 2.5 months after diagnosis, just before his 17 th birthday, from the very treatment that had saved his life at 12.
No family should have to suffer the loss of a child to cancer when there are so many resources available that could be pointed towards finding lifesaving treatmemts and ultimately a cure.
