For Mel Bradley, the Central Valley isn’t just home, it’s a legacy. Born and raised on a peach ranch in Modesto, Mel is a proud third-generation local who grew up driving tractors, working in the summer heat, and learning the value of work early on. “It was a lot of fun as a young boy,” he recalls. “But it was also a lot of hard work picking peaches in the summer.” He remembers a very different Modesto: McHenry Avenue was two lanes, McHenry Village was a small shopping center, and going to town once a week was a big event.

A graduate of Sylvan (’62), Downey High (’66), Modesto Junior College (’68), and UC Davis (’70), Mel earned his degree in electrical engineering before beginning a 36-year career with PG&E. He loved the work: designing, maintaining, and operating substations, transmission lines, and distribution lines; modernizing systems; and bringing new technology and helicopters to the field in the East Bay. “I thoroughly enjoyed being a Division Manager for the Yosemite Division,” he says. “It was probably my favorite job.”

But Mel’s life has been shaped as much by heart as by hard work. He spent 36 years married to Nancy Green, his high school sweetheart, until her passing in 2005 after a long and courageous fight with ovarian cancer, MDS, and AML. “Tragedy can be turned into triumph,” Mel says. “You can make lemonade out of lemons. It’s really up to you.”

Determined to honor Nancy’s life, Mel joined the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training (TNT) in 2006 in Sacramento. What began as a fundraising commitment to cycle around Lake Tahoe grew into a mission. By 2012, he had founded his own local Oakdale-based cycle team…Team 209 so local riders could train close to home. Since then, more than 800 riders have learned from him, raising over $3.8 million for cancer research and patient support. Team 209 has held the title of top fundraising TNT team in the nation for nine consecutive years.

Crossing the finish line in Tahoe never gets old. “The pride is incredible,” Mel says. “Watching people complete something they thought they couldn’t do 18 weeks earlier, and knowing we’re helping people we’ll never meet in ways we will never know.” The Team 209 motto is RIDE BIKES, DRINK BEER(WINE), CURE CANCER, BE AWESOME!  It says it all!

In 2009, Mel married Barbara and began chapter 2 of his life. He describes her as “my rock and major supporter in everything I do.” Their life together is full of joy: attending Gallo Center shows, traveling the world, and spending time in the yard. Every year, they renew their vows in a different country, a tradition that reflects their shared sense of love, gratitude, and adventure.

Since 1998, Mel has lived in Oakdale, where his days are full, serving on 3 non-profit boards of directors, (Gallo Center for the Arts, Community Hospice and Health Services, Community Hospice and Health Services Foundation), running his own electrical contracting business, and managing Team 209. Lastly, Mel is the one who lights up the 85-foot Christmas tree in Woods Park each year.  Downtime is rare, but when it comes, he enjoys Gallo shows, sports, and traveling with Barbara.

What keeps him going? Hope and a belief in human resilience. “People, and teams of people, can do much more than they think if they just keep moving forward,” he says. “That’s true on a bike and in life.”  Always try to turn tragedy into triumph!

To learn more or support the cause, visit team209.org.