Friday, August 4, 2017

Today was our second day in Cleveland, OH. After getting to sleep in for a little, we headed to the Cleveland Clinic which is a children’s hospital that focuses on treatment and rehabilitation for those with disabilities. When we arrived they treated us to a brief introduction of what their clinic does and then gave us a great breakfast that was provided by their chefs. Shortly after we finished breakfast we broke up into small groups and got a tour of the hospital. It was incredible how many services they provide for children with disabilities and the variety of people they treat. We met a few of the clients from the ages of 9 months all the way to 17 years old. The huge grins and endless energy of these kids was irresistibly contagious and brightened every room we walked into. After getting to interact with the clients and walk around the clinic, they took us to the cafeteria to get lunch. While we ate, a few of the clients came and sat with us which gave us the opportunity to spend some time getting to know them. I sat with a boy named Charlie who was 11 years old and suffered from a spinal injury that paralyzed him from the waste down. As we hung out Charlie told joke after joke which usually ended with me being the subject of the punchline. After saying our goodbyes we headed back to lodging for a short break before we went to a dinner cruise with the founder of the North route of JOH. The cruise took us through the rivers of Cleveland from which we could see the entire sky line. We had an incredible dinner on the cruise and learned about the beginnings of our route. After the we made our way back to lodging to go to sleep. 

 
Bryce Maloy
TCU
Cyclist