Lisa J. Frank

In 1994 Lisa J. Frank quit smoking and needed to get back into shape, so she started doing AIDS benefit bike rides. In 1998 at the age of 36, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She went on to help start the Young Survival Coalition and is currently the Board of Directors President.

In 2004—now an avid cyclist—she co-founded the Tour de Pink, a 220 mile, multi-day charity ride to benefit YSC. While she was organizing the first ride, she was diagnosed with a recurrence and wasn't able to participate for the first two years. She got back on her bike in 2006 with over 50 others and rode from NYC to Hershey, PA. In 2011 after seven years of being cancer-free, Frank was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer and went through chemo, radiation, and surgery to remove her salivary glands and lymph nodes. As of June this year, she has "no evidence" of cancer and the TDP ride now raises over $1 million a year for YSC and the number of survivors participating keep increasing.

"Somebody fresh out of treatment might say, 'I don’t have the energy, I don't have the strength.’ But the beauty of the ride is if you want to go ten miles, get in the van, and go to the next rest stop, you can," says Frank. "It's not so much about doing every mile, it's really about being part of the community, being there, and showing yourself (and others) that you can do amazing things no matter what you've been through."