HUMAN INTEREST STORIES

Dear Lupus Foundation of Ontario:

Just a quick letter of intorduction ...

I'm Geoff, an Australian and I've just cycled over 9000 miles around the USA representing the Lupus Foundation of America and The Alliance for Lupus Research out of New York.

I was diagnosed in 2003 and my website will provide you with a little more information regarding my journey: www.bikeusa2007.com.

I realise Lupus is a global issue, therefore I'm now in the progress of telling my story world-wide and I'd like to assist where possible.

If I can be of any assistance or if you'd like to chat about my journey, please don't hesitate to contact me.

If any of your members would like to contact me, please pass on my details.

I would also like to link our websites if this is possible for even more awareness in your region.

I plan to publish a book next year and if I can visit Ontario again, that would be wonderful. My aim is to inspire, educate and discuss what I've learnt over the past six months - there is hope!

Below is a recent article detailing my trip and arrival in New York.

Kind regards and thanks so much for your time,

Geoff Thomas
www.bikeusa2007.com

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Bicyclist Will Conclude 9000 Mile Lap Around U.S on Sunday in New York City

Australian Geoff Thomas Didn't Just Ride Across the United States - He Rode AROUND IT, Visiting Every Corner to Create Awareness for Lupus

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Australian Geoff Thomas will conclude his five-month bicycle "lap around the United States" on Sunday, September 30, in New York City's Madison Square Park at 1:00 p.m. Geoff has made headlines throughout the U.S. in what he says is the first trip of its kind to raise awareness for lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease that affects him and more than five million other individuals worldwide.

Despite having lupus -- a disease which causes the immune system to go awry and attack the body's own cells and tissue -- Geoff has spent the past five months pedaling 9,000 miles over mountains, through valleys, across deserts, and along the Pacific and Atlantic coastlines.

Geoff began his journey in New York City in April and has ridden his bicycle through 28 states. He established a Website, http://www.bikeusa2007.com, so his friends and family back home in Australia could track his progress. His Website includes photos of his journey and a journal to chronicle his adventure while in the U.S. Eventually he hopes to write a book about his travels through America.

This ride is meaningful to Geoff because in 2003 he was diagnosed with a form of lupus that affects his skin. Lupus is not as common among men - only about ten percent of people with lupus are males. Geoff wanted to raise awareness of lupus because it is a relatively unknown condition and is responsible for thousands of deaths annually.