SEI consultants dedicate a significant amount of time and effort to community outreach by supporting great causes and charities across all office locations. One charity that is near and dear to not only our SEI Boston hearts, but crosses all of our SEI offices, is the Pan-Massachusetts Challenge (PMC).
The Pan-Mass Challenge raises money for life-saving cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute through an annual bike-a-thon that crosses the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The event raises more money than any other single athletic fundraising event in the entire US!
Consider these impressive PMC facts and figures:
- Founded in 1980
- Since inception, the foundation has raised $500 million for adult and pediatric cancer care and research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
- 100% of every rider-raised dollar is donated directly to the cause
- In 2015, over 6000 riders generated a record gift of $45 million
- 4000 volunteers commit their time, resources and energy to the event without financial compensation
SEI has participated for the last nine years in this event; and by participate, I mean PARTICIPATE. On top of an ambitious fundraising goal of $4,500 per rider, our SEI participants have always opted to ride the long, strenuous 192 mile, two-day “original” route. We have steadily grown our contingent of riders to six or seven every year and the forthcoming August 2016 ride marks a couple of milestones in our participation:
- For the first time, we have riders from three different offices: Boston, NYC and Chicago.
- One of our participants is a cancer survivor himself, and as such, is part of an elite group of “Living Proof” riders.
Also for the first time, we have a group of SEI consultants volunteering at one of the Saturday water stops. These volunteers will be dedicating ten hours of their time supporting the thousands of riders who come through these stops.
There is an important aspect has not changed over the years: the financial contributions from members of the SEI family, across all eight offices including our newly opened Washington DC office. Fundraising limits are steep and every year SEI comes through with individual donations. These individual donations are then matched by the company to further increase our annual total.
Our 2016 team includes two veteran riders and four first time riders. This generates a mix of excitement and anxiety as the veterans help the newbies prepare for up to 14 hours on the bike over a two-day period. The newbies will soon learn that riding in memory or support of loved ones affected by cancer and being cheered on by thousands of supporters along the route makes for a truly exceptional and triumphant experience. Although, compared to battling cancer, how difficult can a bike ride across Massachusetts be?
In a few weeks, SEI offices across the country will be sending their collective fundraising and moral support to both the veterans and newbies as they participate in this unique and transformational experience! If you would like to learn more about the Pan Mass Challenge, you can do so at https://www.pmc.org/about
