Mesa resident Steven Plesh was doing field work for Bristol Myers Squibb in 2018 when he learned his mother had been diagnosed with breast cancer.
Although Plesh wanted to go home immediately to be with his mother, she wanted him to finish his work in Alaska. Thankfully, Plesh’s mother survived her cancer battle. When he returned home, his mother, amidst her treatment, suggested he participate in a local charity bike ride to benefit a cancer center.
“It was really important to her that I stayed and finished out the field season in Alaska, but you can be sure as soon as I got back that I spent an appreciable amount of time at home in Madison, Wisconsin,” Plesh said. “That’s when we were turned on to the local charity ride that was taking place...so I signed up, raised a bit of money and the finish of the ride culminated in a special moment for me and my mom. I’m at the finish line with a bib that says I’m riding for my mom and she was waiting right there when I crossed the finish line. That was a really emotional moment.”
