Visit the Row for Hope website at http://www.rowforhope.com
Row for Hope, and all that we hope to accomplish, is dedicated to the memory of Katherine Raub Ridley. A 
passionate and devoted champion of worthy causes, Kathie’s life and works centered around her family, her commitment to historic preservation, her energetic pursuit of a host of interests and hobbies, and her faith. Kathie Ridley taught her children to love boundlessly, believe steadfastly, and to work tirelessly for positive change in the world. She instilled in them a sense that nothing is impossible, and that nothing they did with passionate dedication could fail. Row for Hope is Joy and Paul’s thank-you gift to Kathie, and their unwavering effort to spare other families from similar loss.
Paul Ridley is a 25 year-old resident of Stamford, Connecticut. His rowing career began at Colgate University and he continues to train out of Norwalk River Rowing Association, in Norwalk, CT. Paul was raised in Binghamton, New York. In early 2001 he lost his mother, Katherine Ridley, to malignant skin cancer. Later that year his father, Mark Ridley, was diagnosed with prostate cancer, was successfully treated, and is now cancer-free. Paul works for Greenwich Associates, a management consultancy to the asset management industry, in Stamford, CT. He is poised to become the third and youngest American to row any ocean solo and unsupported.
Paul’s unsupported trans-Atlantic expedition will begin in the Canary Islands in early December, 2008. With only oars to power him, he’ll set off from Africa to South America, crossing the whole of the Atlantic Ocean. Along the way he’ll row more than 3,000 nautical miles and spend between 60 and 80 days and nights at sea, landing in the Caribbean in February, 2009. While at sea, Paul will sleep in an enclosed cabin not much bigger than himself, and row 10-12 hours each day. Though Paul will be in contact with a land-based support team via satellite phone, he’ll be entirely alone on the open ocean with no chase boat or means of resupply. Paul’s journey will be truly solo and unassisted.
The expedition is an opportunity for Paul to make a significant contribution to cancer research in memory of his mother.
Row for Hope is proud to partner with Yale Cancer Center in order to fund cutting-edge research that is dedicated to bringing tomorrow’s cancer treatments and cures to patients today. Funds raised by Row for Hope in 2008-2009 will help to expand the efforts of Dr. Mario Sznol, Vice-Chief of Medical Oncology and Co-Director of the Yale Cancer Center Melanoma Program.
Dr. Sznol’s expertise is in cancer immunotherapy, early drug development for cancer, and the treatment of patients with melanoma and renal cell carcinoma.
Yale Cancer Center is dedicated to bringing tomorrow’s cancer treatments and cures to patients today. A National Cancer Institute designated comprehensive cancer center for over 30 years,
Yale Cancer Center is one of only 41 Centers in the nation and the only comprehensive center in Southern New England.
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