Crossing the finish line

: Some of the crowd that greeted Steve Sparks on his arrival in Wilmington spelled out their support of him

Nine days and about 900 miles after starting his one man bikeathon from Florida to Delaware, Nemours general counsel Steve Sparks reached his destination Friday. Sparks pedaled onto the grounds of the Nemours Mansion in North Wilmington shortly after noon to complete his journey. A small group of family, Nemours employees and others greeted Sparks, who embarked on the trek May 26th in an effort to raise money for A.I du Pont Hospital for Children and Nemours. He wanted to express his gratitude for the treatment his daughter, now 21, received at A.I. du Pont Hospital while battling leukemia as a child during the 1990′s.

Sparks raised just over $91 thousand dollars for Nemours with his ride, which he said went largely without incident. And as he closed in on the finish Friday, Sparks took time to reflect.

“What I was thinking about was what a personal journey it was. It was a personal journey of thanks,” said an emotional Sparks as he described the final miles of his ride. “Without the work of Nemours I wouldn’t have my family.”

A.I. du Pont Hospital for Children CEO Dr. Kevin Churchwell had words of thanks for Sparks, for raising money and awareness for Nemours and A.I. du Pont Hospital.

“It’s an opportunity for us to let our community know what we are doing and how they can help,” said Dr. Churchwell. “This bike ride raised money for cancer research. That’s really a big deal. Raising just over $91 thousand is hard to do.”