COLUMBUS, Ohio – A 2003 Indian Lake graduate, fueled by the loss of loved ones to cancer, is jumping on a bicycle to join a Columbus benefit ride to be held Aug. 10-12.

Elizabeth Lacher is currently fund raising for her participation in Pelotonia, a bike tour that aims to cure cancer.

The subject hits home for Lacher, who lost her mother Rita Lacher, a Huntsville Elementary teacher, to colon cancer in 1999 after a five-year bout with the disease. Elizabeth was 15 years old when her mother died.

Then she lost her aunt Rena Wischmeyer, who was like a second mother to her, to uterine cancer in 2006. She passed away within a year after diagnosis.

If that were not enough, two of Lacher’s high school teachers, Russ Hogue and Jeff Kerns, also died of cancer. Her father Jeff Lacher, who still lives in Indian Lake, worked with them at Indian Lake High School.

“It’s really hard,” she said, “It came really fast.”

She remembers coming to Columbus, where she now lives, often for her mother’s treatments.

She started seeing Pelotonia signs around town recently, and she had an immediate gut feeling she needed to get involved.

“It really resonated with me,” she said. “One hundred percent of funds raised go to the James Cancer Hospital, where my mom got her treatment.”

So she signed up at the end of May, near the cutoff for entry, and began a fund-raising campaign: baking.

“If my friends or family members want cookies for special occasions, I bake them for donation only,” she said.

She recently did Fourth of July cookies for a friend’s party.

To date she has raised $665 of her $1,250 goal.

She has also been training for the ride, which has been interesting since Lacher is not a cyclist.

“I’m a runner,” she said, “Running has always been more natural to me.”

While training for her new sport, Lacher has only encountered a few bumps along the way. She got a flat tire as she rode around Columbus recently and luckily some experienced riders helped her fix it.

She now has a biking kit so she can handle the job the next time something goes wrong.

She is completely driven to make the most of her time, to do her part to raise awareness and money for cancer research.

“You never know what might happen to you, so do what you can do while you can,” she said. “You don’t have to be a stellar athlete to give back.”

Several of her friends and family members are taking advantage of non-athletic Pelotonia volunteer opportunities.

More information about the ride can be found at www.pelotonia.org. Search for Elizabeth Lacher under the profiles tab to donate to her ride.