Ridgefield, CT -- Larry and Sherrie Ruschmeyer, owners of New England Landscape & Management, Inc. in Ridgefield, CT are excited and proud to announce their 4th year participating in the American Cancer Society’s (ACS) Hope on the Slopes event Sunday, February 22, 2015 at Jay Peak, VT. Hope on the Slopes is a ski and snowboarding event held at venues nationwide to fight cancer.
“We participate as Team Nick Strong in honor of our son, Nick, who was diagnosed with ocular melanoma while he was in college,” says his mother, Sherrie. “Four and a half years ago Nick heard the words "you have cancer.” At 20 years old, his young life changed in a heartbeat.”
His father, Larry Ruschmeyer, adds: “Hope on the Slopes is a small way for us to give back to the greater community and the work of the American Cancer Society. Nick is the inspiration behind our work and involvement. Being a part of this event enables us as a family to stay involved. It continues to amaze me how many people Nick has touched and continue to pray for him.”
According to Sherrie the idea is really the same as Relay For Life – you form a team, the team raises funds from family members and friends, and all funds raised go to support the work of the American Cancer Society. Larry and Sherrie’s only request of the ACS was that all of the funds they raise go to fight ocular melanoma, or melanoma of the eye - an extremely rare disease for a young person like their son to face.
Last year Team Nick Strong beat out 20 other teams to raise over $6,000.00. The event as a whole raised over $30,000 for the ACS. Even more importantly, Sherrie notes, Team Nick Strong also won the Hope Cup, awarded to the team demonstrating the most team spirit and camaraderie.
The day of the event all skiers arrive in the morning and are given a Flaik tracker, which is then used to monitor how many vertical miles each individual skis or rides. The team that completes the most vertical miles wins an award at the end of the day.
New England Landscape & Management sponsors Team Nick Strong, outfitting the team with matching t-shirts and providing prizes like jackets and sweatshirts for fundraisers on the team. And each year the team gets a bit bigger, filling up with mostly young 20 something’s – friends of Nick’s from college as well as family members. Larry, Sherrie and their daughter Nicole and son Cody also ski as part of the team.
“We were the top fundraising team in 2014 – we want to beat our record from last year!!”
If you would like to help raise money for ocular melanoma click here and donate to Team Nick Strong. Or you can mail in a check to: ACS c/o New England Landscape & Management, Inc., P.O. Box 1066, Ridgefield, CT 06877
ABOUT Hope on the Slopes
Hope on the Slopes is a team and individual skiing and board event to fight cancer. Events are held in Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Oregon, Washington and Vermont. Participants engage in a virtual competition with other Hope on the Slopes participants in two categories: Dollars Raised and Vertical Feet. Separate registration is required for individuals and teams. The goal of Hope on the Slopes is to not only have fun, but also raise money for the American Cancer Society, helping in its mission to eliminate cancer.
ABOUT New England Landscape & Management, Inc.
New England Landscaping and Management, Inc. is a family owned, full service-landscaping firm based in Ridgefield, CT. Larry Ruschmeyer founded the company over 33 years ago as a one-man operation servicing just six commercial accounts. Today the business has 8-14 employees (depending on the season), who provide all aspects of residential and commercial landscaping; from plantings and masonry to estate and property maintenance for commercial and residential clients throughout Fairfield and Litchfield Counties.