Mornin' Y'All.
No doubt many of you have watched the video that Redd posted. What you haven't heard is the "back story".
That entire interview was far more emotional than what was aired, partly for time constraints, and partly out of respect for Woody and his family.
At one point in the interview each of Woody's girls talked about how Woody was before he became ill. Camping trips, fishing trips, or just sitting on the porch watching the girls play. That is how these girls remember their father. All of these things are gone now, and the situation is getting worse.
Instead of Woody watching his daughters play, Woody's daughters watch him as he lays in bed staring off into space. Sometimes Woody doesn't know who he is, where he is, or what is happening to him, and sometimes Woody has some rather loud outbursts. Just the other day Woody was convinced that he was in a movie theater and was complaining because the movie had not started. Recently there have been other incidents such as this, and each one wreaks havoc, not only to Woody, but to his family, and most especially to his daughters.
As you saw in the video, Woody's daughters are not standing idly by while their father suffers. Not only have they banded together for the 20 mile "Walk For Life" tomorrow, they are helping take care of their father. As an example, Woody's youngest daughter "Boo" has become an "expert" on Woody's meds. Of the 30 odd pills that Woody must take on a daily basis, Boo knows the names and purpose for each one, she knows when they need to be taken, and how many of each to take. Little girls should not have to learn things like this, and little girls should not have to walk 20 miles to raise money either. This is where you and I come in.
As you heard during the video, Woody's girls set of goal of 100 sponsors for this walk, with each sponsor donating $1.00 per mile for a combined total of $2000.00, just enough to pay Woody's bills for one month. At this point, the girls are short by 17 sponsors. They were short by 18, but I've stepped up, and now it's your turn. Woody's girls need you, and Woody needs you. I know times are tough, and I don't want to lay a guilt trip on anyone, but surely there are 17 righteous brothers and sisters here. Think about it for a minute. Is that case of beer really necessary? Can you do without calling Dominoes for one night?
Also, Woody and his family still need your prayers, and Redd needs some special prayers. Redd is working her butt off, and just the other day she dropped her bike. She was on her way to get more sponsors and a coal truck had dumped some of it's load onto the roadway. Redd had no choice but to lay the bike down. Redd has several "boo-boos", some road rash, a minor concussion, and one wound that needed stitches. Apparently the crash bars kept the damage to the bike at a minimum, so Redd can still ride.
One final thought: As a way to remember some one who cannot be with you on a ride, there is a biker custom of keeping one rider peg down, and if you are remembering some one who has passed away, you keep two pegs down. I'd like to change that a little and ask that whenever you ride solo, keep one peg down for Woody, and one peg down for his family. I've been doing this for a while now, and just yesterday someone asked me why. That was a golden opportunity to get the word out not only for Woody, but also for everyone else that is dealing with organ failure and the lack of donors.
Y'All Ride safe,