Warm weather and warmer welcome greet Tour of Hope Team in Phoenix area

Tour of Hope Team member Mary Kreis speaks to the crowd at Maricopa Unified Schools near Phoenix and the group responds by shouting, "Viva!" the name of her daughter.

MARICOPA, AZ – After pedaling in the heat for five hours, the sounds of cheering schoolchildren was like music to the Tour of Hope riders’ ears. And when they rounded the corner to see 1,000 kids and teachers, the challenges of the toasty ride melted away.

“It was so great to hear you cheering us on,” Team member Chris Millard told the group. “When we heard your voices, we knew there was something special going on.”

The riders got off their bikes, energized by the happy group. They tagged their fellow Team members on the next squad, and sent them on their way.

Students, teachers and community members rallied the Tour of Hope Team at Maricopa United Schools, near Phoenix.

Students and teachers at Maricopa United Schools greeted the Team with a marching band, yellow balloons and homemade signs. One of the children sang the national anthem, and all were eager to meet the riders personally.

Several of the Team members spoke to the group and shared their cancer stories. Rider Mary Kries, a skin cancer survivor who was pregnant when she was diagnosed, cautioned the children to always wear their sunscreen, especially in the hot Arizona sun. She told them about her baby daughter, Viva, which is also the name of her six-person Tour of Hope Team squad. The group responded to Mary’s touching story by shouting her baby’s name, “Viva! Viva! Viva!”

Tour of Hope Team squads meet up at the Maricopa United Schools near Phoenix, as one completes a stage and another heads out to pedal more miles toward Washington, DC.

It was like old home week for Scott Perelstein, whose friends and family drove down from Flagstaff to cheer him on.

The Hope Rally was quite possibly the biggest thing ever to happen in Maricopa, a town outside Phoenix incorporated just two years ago! The Tour of Hope Team won’t soon forget the 109-degree ride through the new town, nor the enthusiastic reception they experienced there on their cross-country journey.