By Cathy Ingalls
Albany Democrat-Herald | Posted: Tuesday, May 5, 2009 12:00 am
Albany man will trek Pacific Crest Trail to raise money for cancer foundation
Life does not end with a cancer diagnosis - it actually can be the start of real living.
That is the philosophy of 31-year-old Ryan Krabill of Albany, who was diagnosed with tongue cancer when he was 26. He underwent a year of treatment, and now he's fine.
In fact, he feels so good that he's going to follow his longtime dream of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, all 2,658 miles of it. And he is going alone, packing 35 pounds of gear.
His trip begins in Campo, Calif., and ends in Manning Park, B.C.
He hopes to do the trip all at one time. He leaves today and expects to be gone 41/2 months. He wants to finish on Sept. 21, the same date as his last cancer treatment in 2005.
"I'm jobless, mortgageless and wifeless, so I better do this now," he said.
Not only is the trek something Krabill wants to do for himself, he is doing the hike to benefit others who have cancer or who will get it sometime in their lives.
He has signed on with the Lance Armstrong Foundation. "It's an organization looking to find a cure for cancer and it helps show what people can do after surviving the disease," Krabill said.
His goal is to earn $10 a mile on his trek, which he will donate to the seven-time Tour de France winner's foundation. If he meets his goal, the foundation will receive $26,580.
Krabill is not doing any soliciting. The money is coming in from friends, relatives and through word of mouth.
Donations can be made online at www.hikefor
His father, Lyle Krabill, thinks the hike will be a good experience, "and he won't admit it but I think he's a bit nervous," he said.
He knows Krabill's mother, Carolyn, is nervous.
Getting cancer of the tongue was the last thing Krabill thought would happen. He did not smoke or chew tobacco.
After graduating from Fairview Christian School, he enrolled at Westmont College in Santa Barbara intending to be a doctor. A difficult time in organic chemistry persuaded him to change his mind. He became a biology and communication studies major.
After 9/11, "I wanted to do something worthwhile, to help out, get involved," he said. So he packed up his 1994 Honda Accord, which he still drives, and took a job as an intern with Oregon Congressman Greg Walden.
Later, he worked for the sergeant-at-arms in the Senate and then he decided to go to Washington state in summer 2004 to help elect the Bush-Cheney ticket.
That was when he received his diagnosis.
Two weeks after hearing that a surgery did not get all of his cancer, he learned he had a job with the White House as a liaison to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
He no longer works in the White House and will decide what to do for a job when he finishes his hike.
Follow along
Krabill will blog about his journey at http://www.hikeforhope2009.com.