Brody Devenbaugh is your typical 4th-grade student who has a wide variety of hobbies. His favorite is biking, which he has turned into a way to raise money for childhood cancer. 

Each September, Brody, a student at McCurdy Elementary, participates in the Great Cycle Challenge, and in three years, he has surpassed $3,000 raised and pedaled over 250 miles. The challenge, benefiting the Children's Cancer Research Fund, is for people of all ages, abilities, and from every state across the country, with participants setting a personal riding goal and challenging themselves to pedal to fight kids’ cancer. 

“I started riding because my cousin Bailey died of cancer, and I just think it’s wrong how kids have to go through cancer,” Brody said. 

His cousin, Bailey Devenbaugh, died at 19 with a cancerous brain tumor in 2016. 

“We always talked about living in Bailey’s memory, the Great Cycle Challenge showed up on Facebook, and so we started with 50 miles the first year and have been going up each year since,” Eric Devenbaugh, Brody’s dad, details.  “I would have been happy to raise five dollars because I enjoy spending time with him and talking about how it might be a hard ride, but kids with cancer go through far worse.”  

Cancer is the top disease-related cause of death for children and teens in the United States. Over 15,000 children are diagnosed with cancer each year, and sadly, an average of 38 kids die of cancer every week. Brody wants to do what he can to bring awareness to this insidious disease. 

“Brody has demonstrated a commitment to give back to assist others,” Dr. Germaine Stewart, building principal at McCurdy Elementary, said. “We are so proud of his efforts in raising funds for the Great Cycle Challenge. Brody is an excellent example of how students can have a positive impact on their community!” 

You can keep up with Brody’s journey and help support his challenge by visiting https://greatcyclechallenge.com/riders/BrodyDevenbaugh.

HSD is proud of Brody Devenbaugh and encourages all students to raise their voices for causes that mean the most to them!