York Town News
Man on a mission: Kittery kayaker stops in York in journey to fight brain cancer
By Jennifer L. Saunders
YORK - Tom Tieman is taking on the physical challenge of a lifetime to honor those fighting a different battle: one with brain cancer.
The Kittery resident departed Saturday, June 30, to kayak more than 350 miles along the Maine Island Trail to raise funds and awareness for brain cancer research.
He is taking on this challenge, he explained, to honor the legacy of his sister-in-law, "and to help those, like my coworker Frank, who confront the effects of a brain tumor everyday."
Tieman's sister-in-law was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor on Sept. 10, 2001, he explained on his website, describing the cause for his trip. Just two and a half years later, that tumor claimed her life.
For Tieman, this adventure and labor of love began Saturday when he departed from Traip Academy in Kittery on his 60-day odyssey. Having constructed his own pedal-power kayak, he explained, he is no stranger to adventurous exploits. In fact, after he graduated from high school in 1976, he tackled a 750-mile solo cycling trek.
"The two-week trip permanently whetted my appetite for adventure," he said, adding that other such adventures have followed in the decades that have passed since that first journey.
Tieman is keeping an online journal of his trip, including his adventures on Day 1, when he arrived in York.
"With Nubble lighthouse as a guide, it was easy to find York Beach," he wrote. "Tonight, I am staying at one of friendliest campgrounds I've ever been to, Libby's Oceanside Camps."
He departed the next morning to continue on to Cape Porpoise, feeling very safe, he wrote in his journal, as he encountered many security vessels stationed off the shore of Kennebunkport for President George W. Bush's visit to Walker's Point.
Reached by e-mail on Tuesday, July 3, Tieman confirmed his journey is continuing and added, "York was a lot of fun."
Tieman hopes his trek will raise awareness as well as $10,000 in donations in support of the National Brain Tumor Foundation (NBTF), a nationwide nonprofit organization serving people whose lives are affected by brain tumors. In the United States alone, an estimated 500 adults and children are diagnosed with brain tumors everyday. Secondary brain tumors - those that spread from a cancer in another part of the body - affect 15 percent of all cancer patients.
"There are over 120 different types of brain tumors - both malignant and non-malignant, primary and secondary," explained Rob Tufel, executive director of the National Brain Tumor Foundation, who added, "It takes people like Tom Tieman who really make a difference in supporting NBTF research and patient service programs. He demonstrates the ability we all have as individuals to contribute to the fight against brain cancer. His passionate work on behalf of the NBTF is a source of tremendous inspiration for patients, their families and those working toward a cure."
For more about NBTF, call (800) 934-2873 or visit http://www.braintumor.org/.
To follow Tieman on his journey of hope, visit http://www.mainetrek.com/ and, to make a donation to help him meet his goal, visit www.firstgiving.com/MaineTrek.
