Wheeling for Healing: Cycling Across America for Multiple Myeloma Awareness

March is Multiple Myeloma Awareness Month, and at Goodness Village, this holds special significance. Our organization began 30 years ago exclusively for those battling multiple myeloma, providing a home away from home during treatment. While we expanded in 2020 to serve patients with other serious medical conditions, our roots remain deeply connected to the multiple myeloma community.

One of our recent guests, Chris Seab, and his wife, Liz, from Montana, have stayed at Goodness Village three times during Chris’s treatments. Through Chris, we learned of an incredible journey taken by his longtime friends, Rob Guba, Burke Moran, and Mike Jastram. Moved by Chris’s diagnosis, they embarked on a 3,100-mile cycling journey across America to raise awareness and funds for multiple myeloma research.

The friends started, Wheeling for Healing, after Chris’s diagnosis. Wanting to support their friend in a meaningful way, they came up with the idea of biking from Oceanside, California, to Jacksonville, Florida. None had ever cycled competitively, but they saw this challenge as a way to mirror the perseverance and resilience Chris and others battling multiple myeloma show every day. “Chris obviously has challenges, and if he has to get through those types of challenges, then we could ride our electric bikes across the country,” Rob shared.

The journey wasn’t easy. They faced steep elevations, extreme weather, and mechanical failures—sometimes getting delayed for days while making repairs. But along the way, they were surprised by how many people they met who had been personally affected by multiple myeloma—a disease they had never even heard of before Chris’s diagnosis.  One woman they met while camping in New Mexico, told them her husband, a Border Patrol agent, had been diagnosed just a year earlier and was heading back for treatment.

Throughout their ride, the team received support from the multiple myeloma community, including UAMS, where Chris is being treated. UAMS provided valuable resources and connections, helping them understand the disease and its impact. During one of their stops, they visited Chris at his Goodness Village apartment. “What a great place,” Rob recalled. “It allowed them to step outside the hospital and normalize their lives during treatment. We’re big believers in what you guys are doing.”

After close to 30 days on the road, Wheeling for Healing reached their final stop in Jacksonville, Florida—a moment filled with pride and reflection. For Rob, Burke, and Mike, the journey was an eye-opening and deeply rewarding experience. Along the way, they connected with incredible people, heard powerful stories, and saw firsthand the impact of their mission. Now, inspired by what they’ve learned, they’re already planning future rides, hoping to raise even more awareness and funds for multiple myeloma research.

At Goodness Village, we are honored to play a role in the journey of families like Chris and Liz’s. Their story, and the efforts of Wheeling for Healing, remind us why our mission of providing a home during treatment is so important. To learn more about Wheeling for Healing and their journey, follow them on Facebook at @wheelingforhealing or Instagram at @thewheelingforhealing.