Letter

Hi everyone!

I have some exciting news to share. Next summer, I am embarking on an incredible journey of a lifetime: biking 4500+ miles from Austin, Texas to Anchorage, Alaska!! :bicyclist::dash:

I am a proud member of the 2024 Texas 4000 for Cancer team — a group of about 90 UT Austin undergraduate students with a passion for finding a cure for cancer and spreading hope for a future without this disease. In June of 2024, I along with the rest of the riders from Texas 4000 will embark on the 21st annual 4,500-mile cycling journey across North America, which will take 70 days to complete.

I am motivated and inspired to undertake this feat because my grandmothers and grandfather were affected by breast and colon cancers. I am also excited to meet and learn from people along the journey. I am motivated to push myself physically and mentally as well.

As riders, we are responsible for planning the routes, finding host families, preparing the cancer awareness programs, volunteering in the community, and raising at least $4,500—a dollar per mile ridden. Part of the money we raise goes towards our operations, and we grant out the rest. Since Texas 4000’s inception in 2004, we have awarded over $4.6 million in grants towards the fight against cancer. None of this is possible without the support of people like you, and that’s why today I am asking you to make a tax-deductible donation to help in the fight against cancer. You can also make your donation online via my Texas 4000 profile at https://www.justgiving.com/page/anaya-mehta, or I can provide a pre-addressed envelope if you would like to send a check made payable to Texas 4000 for Cancer with my name on the “payment for” line.

Any amount you can donate will be greatly appreciated—no donation is too small. You can learn more at www.texas4000.org, and please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I am grateful for your help and I look forward to hearing from you.

To Alaska and back,

Anaya

Why I Ride

My grandmothers have all been afflicted with a variety of physical ailments. From fighting breast cancer, getting mastectomies, diabetes, weak knees, failing kidneys, dialysis three times a day, and broken bones, I remember their breakfasts to be piles of pills with a side of food. My earliest memories of them include being bedridden, unable to go anywhere, or doing so with great difficulty. It hindered any chance they had of being able to enjoy their retirement years, whether it be traveling, or spending time with their grandchildren, or even hanging out with their friends.

Even still, in their lifetimes, they fought a much larger battle with the antiquated views of society around them which stalled them from reaching their maximum potential. My grandmothers were expected to dedicate their lives to being housewives, like many women from previous generations. They were never encouraged to do anything else. They were taught by their own families and in-laws to be obedient to their husbands, raise their children, cook food and clean the house, and above all, be silent.

Interacting with them paints a whole new picture. My grandmothers were sharp and observant, and had high emotional intelligence. In the time spent at home, they patiently read books, practiced, and gained mastery in fields like sewing, acupressure, and philosophy. With a full education, confidence, and support from their communities, I wonder what amazing things they would have accomplished.

I want to join Texas4000 to ride for my grandmothers and all women who were never able to reach their full potential. I want to honor them by being the strong, passionate, go-getter woman my grandmothers wanted me to be. Pushing myself to accomplish a monumental task, like biking to Alaska, which I never thought I’d be able to do will give me unbridled confidence that I can accomplish anything that I put my mind to and that I can have an impact in the world in helping fight cancer. I want to be confident, fearless, and accomplish things and make differences that they could only dream of doing. I have hope that I can inspire other people, especially other girls, to never put limits on what they think they can achieve, and what we as humans can achieve.