Gilford cyclist will bike from San Diego to Saint Augustine: Coast-to-coast trek supports cancer care

GILFORD — Donna Kuethe has always liked bikes. So much so, that when she got her first job, instead of buying a car, she splurged on a Schwinn Continental 10-speed.

“I do like bicycling, it has been part of my life since I was a kid,” said Kuethe, who was the recreation director for Moultonborough for 41 years before retiring in 2021.

For Kuethe, cycling wasn’t about racing, but adventure. She and her college roommate-turned-life-long-friend have toured Eastern Canada and Maine on bicycles, and in 2008, Kuethe did a solo ride to attend a conference in Baltimore — though she took public transit through all the major metro areas on the route.

But next month, Kuethe will set off for her greatest bicycling adventure yet: a 3,100-mile pedal across the country. It’s a ride she’s always wanted to experience — one that starts with a ceremonial dip of the rear tire in the Pacific Ocean, and ends with a splash of the Atlantic on the front tire — but she never found the time.

It’s a finite resource, time. That point was driven home for Kuethe in 2011, when she was diagnosed with cancer.

Kuethe was supposed to be joining her college roommate for a group ride around the Finger Lakes region of New York in 2011. Instead, she was beginning a long, difficult cancer treatment, one that would challenge her and her doctors, and which continues to shape her life, even though she has graduated from “cancer patient” to “cancer survivor.”

Kuethe’s diagnosis in 2011 was for stage 3 breast cancer, with three malignant tumors. The disease was rare, aggressive and difficult to treat. It threatened to end her life, but at one point, it had already taken away the life that she knew.

Kuethe — who built Moultonborugh’s Recreation Department from nothing — was always one to throw herself into situations many people shy from. She plays and performs music and she’s skydived, paddled through whitewater rapids, and travels the world. There were times during her treatment, though, she couldn’t even venture into a grocery store.

“There was a point when things weren’t going well in my cancer journey,” Kuethe said, “I didn’t know if I was going to do these kinds of things again ... I had a determination that I would get back to do these kinds of things.”

In addition to her medical care at Concord Hospital’s Payson Center, Kuethe also engaged with some of the supportive services offered. She even joined a support group, something she never saw herself doing.

She was also invited to join the pilot of the AntiCancer Lifestyle Program, which teaches people how to eat healthy and live in a way to support their ongoing wellness. She also made friendships, some of which made indelible impacts on her. She now co-facilitates a support group called “Living with Cancer and Beyond.”

Kuethe’s coast-to-coast cycling journey starts on Thursday, March 7, and she’s using the ride as a way to raise money for the Payson Center. She has a goal of raising $10,000; information on how to contribute can be found at runsignup.com/Race/NH/Concord/CoasttoCoastforHOPE. Her ride will be part of a supported group of 25 other women — her college roommate will be there, too — all pedaling from San Diego, California, to St. Augustine, Florida. In doing so, she’ll satisfy a desire she’s had since she was a girl, and will pay tribute to an organization that has allowed her to continue chasing adventure.

“Fulfilling a dream is huge, being able to raise money for a cause and a place that’s so important to me and many other people is really special,” Kuethe said. “It will go directly toward providing services, making sure there’s support groups and people that will help you through this process.”

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The Sunshine Effect is a series in The Laconia Daily Sun highlighting the people and organizations working to improve our communities through volunteering and fundraising. We believe that telling their stories will encourage others to support their work, and launch new charitable efforts of their own. Have a suggestion for someone making a difference we should feature? Share it with us at laconiadailysun.com/sunshineeffecttip.