Going the extra miles

Every once in a while, circumstances conspire to give courage and compassion a special vehicle – and recently, that vehicle was a bicycle. Actually, several of them.

been members of Bob’s bone marrow transplant team only 18 months earlier.

Amelia Langston, MD, associate professor of hematology and oncology and medical director of the Emory Bone Marrow and Stem Cell Transplant Center, and nurses planning on doing to seek permission, and the first thing she said, was ‘Cool. I’d like to join you.’” very sick. When someone comes out of this, it’s very uplifting.”

And what about Bob? How is he?

“I feel so lucky to be alive, and I know I have Dr. Langston, the others who helped treat me at Winship, and my bone marrow stem cell donor to thank.”

It started a couple of years ago when Alpharetta resident Bob Falkenberg was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and underwent a bone marrow transplant at Winship. It ended this year on June 30 in Key West, Fla., when Falkenberg, his daughter Katie and best friend Carl Kooyoomjian finished a month-long bike odyssey of nearly 1,700 miles. Bob wanted to undertake the ride to raise money for Winship and heighten awareness about the need for bone marrow donors. Falkenberg’s Lifeblood Ride raised more than $18,000 for Winship and also immeasurable awareness. The trio left Beverly Farms, Massachusetts on June 2 and traveled down the east coast, through the car-clogged streets of Manhattan, through humid air filled with chicken feathers in rural Virginia and over roads littered with dead alligators in Florida.

“It was interesting to see how the road kill changed along the way,” says Katie, Bob’s daughter. Toward the end of their route, they were met by more pleasant things. Several members of Falkenberg’s treatment team drove close to 500 miles to meet up with the trio in Palm Coast, Fla. and then biked more than 100 miles with them to show their support for Bob’s efforts. They had

Jessica Thomas, Rachel Veldman and Christina Gragnaniello drove to Palm Coast, Fla., to meet Bob, Katie and Carl on June 24. With bicycles strapped on the back of Langston’s car, the four left Winship that Friday after clinic. At about 6:30 that evening, the team walked into the Palm Coast Fairfield Inn, pushing their bikes into the lobby.

It was hard to tell who was happier – the Winship treatment team or Bob, Katie and Carl, who had had such a rainy, sandy day on A1A in northern Florida that Bob had put his bike into the shower at the motel to clean it.

“I think it’s fantastic,” says Bob when asked what he thought about his doctor and nurses making such an effort to support him. “I remember when I told Dr. Langston what I was

And so she did. When the nurses on the treatment team heard about it, they were on board, too. Jessica, a two-time cancer survivor, rode with Langston on June 25 and 26 while Rachel and Christina drove down A1A, through Daytona Beach, New Smyrna and on to Titusville, Fla..

Langston, Thomas and other members of the bone marrow treatment team have participated in fundraisers, walks and runs for other patients, and they are honored to do so, they explained.

“He’s doing a lot more,” says Christina. “We just came down here to support.”

Langston said that Bob’s good health and his extraordinary effort to give back are inspirational to everyone associated with Winship.

“I think part of what it is, is whether you’re a patient here or staff member, we see a lot of bad things. People get very,

Nearly two years post bone marrow transplant, Bob’s blood counts are great, and he feels better than he felt before a blood pressure spike sent him to the emergency room when his leukemia was diagnosed.

“I feel so lucky to be alive, and I know I have Dr. Langston, the others who helped treat me at Winship, and my bone marrow stem cell donor to thank,” says Bob.

Winship Way

Do you have a story of heroism or kindness about a patient, doctor, nurse or staffer at Winship that you’d like to share? Tell us about it for The Winship Way. Send your story to: virginia.l.anderson@ emory.edu, or call at 404778-5452.