Update: ICanTri for ICanServe

Dear Friends and Family,

I guess you know what they say about the best laid plans.

First The bad news: the Ironman event in China originally scheduled for this
weekend has been called off. Just weeks before the event was to take
place the organizers encountered problems with the local government. Repairs
being done in the area where we were to swim would apparently not be ready in
time.

Now for some good news. The organizers have been kind enough to give
the participants a full refund and a chance to join an Ironman event in another
destination. I am registered to swim, bike and run on July 3 in Jeju, Korea. More
importantly, I am determined more than ever to raise funds for the ICanServe
foundation. NOTHING WOULD MAKE ME PROUDER THAN to do this in honor
of the brave women that bravely fight breast cancer. Nothing would make me
humbler than having you help me realize this goal.

Donations and pledges can be sent or emailed to: javy.olives@gmail.com. For your convenience we can arrange to pick these
up too.

Thank you again.

Javy Olives

ICanTri for ICanServe

Dear Friends and Family,

This will confirm what you probably already knew. I am crazy. Last year's Ironman left me wanting more, so I'm doing it all over again in China come May 29. Those gruelling thirteen hours stripped me down to my core. I learned about pain, patience, sacrifice, hope and the power of the human spirit. Best of all, I learned that nothing is IMpossible. This time around, I am psyched to swim 4 kilometers, cycle 180 kilometers and run 42.2 kilometers not just for myself, but for something much, much bigger.

Twelve years ago, my sister was diagnosed with an advanced stage of breast cancer. She helped start a breast cancer foundation and made one vow: that women diagnosed should not go through it alone, in the dark or in shame. Today, the ICanServe Foundation provides hope and help for women with breast cancer. It promotes early breast cancer detection through high impact information campaigns and early detection programs.

In the time it will take me to complete the Ironman, 240 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and 60 of them will die because of it.

I'd like to TRI and make a change in any little way I can, and I would love for you to help me. Here are some ways you can:

1. Donate a flat amount that feels comfortable for you and your wallet.
2. Pledge any peso amount for every kilometer I complete. (The Ironman is a 226 kilometer event)

If there are cancer survivors you would like to honor, let me know. I will gladly scribble their names on my jersey to remind me why I am out there that day.

Through your generous pledges and donations, every stroke, step and stride I take will help chemotherapy patients on treatment and help subsidize community-based screening programs. Like I said, no one should be helpless or clueless when it comes to cancer.

So there..maybe I'm not so crazy after all.

PS: Below is the pledge form, or you can download it from here. Please disregard my mobile number, as I am in the middle of changing numbers. I may be reached thru javy.olives@gmail.com