Tonya Graham, Libby McFeeters and Vanessa Connick are part of Team Lilly, 15 central west riders who will participate in the Sunsuper Ride To Conquer Cancer on October 11 and 12, which raises money to support the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse.

The two-day cycling adventure will take the team from the heart of Sydney through the Hawkesbury River region to the Blue Mountains and the town of Windsor, covering 100 kilometres on day one, and returning to Sydney’s CBD via the same route the next day.

Ms Connick said the ride was a fun and enjoyable way to support cancer treatment, and added the disease had affected everyone in Team Lilly at some point in their lives.

“Lilly was Tonya Graham’s mother who passed away as a result of cancer. The team is in honour of her,” Ms Connick said.

“Donna Chayna, the team leader, is fighting cancer at the moment, and last year she had chemo and then participated in the ride a couple of days after. She’s pretty amazing.”

Everyone in the team has pledged to raise $2500 each for the Lifehouse, a world-class cancer treatment centre that provides a holistic approach to treating the disease for patients.

Mrs Graham, Ms McFeeters and Ms Connick have been hard at work hosting events in the community to raise $7500 between them before the race.

They have held a trivia night and will host a sold-out Bollywood night at Tonic in Millthorpe tonight, with a strong backing from the village’s community. 

“Everyone’s chipped in, everything’s been provided for us. I think it’s a really good cause and the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse is an amazing cause.”

alexandra.king@fairfaxmedia.com.au