Aaron Katsman
www.IsraelNewsletter.com

While here at IOI, we try and stick to blogging about Israeli stocks  that trade in the US, we just couldn’t pass up writing about one of the most inspirational stories of parenthood and love that we have seen.

Meet Team Hoyt. Dick and Rick Hoyt are a father-and-son team from Massachusetts who together compete just about continuously in marathon races. And if they’re not in a marathon they are in a triathlon, combining  26.2 miles of running, 112 miles of bicycling, and 2.4 miles of swimming. Together they have climbed mountains, and once trekked 3,735 miles across America.

“At Rick’s birth in 1962 the umbilical cord coiled around his neck and cut off oxygen to his brain. Dick and his wife, Judy, were told that there would be no hope for their child’s development.

“It’s been a story of exclusion ever since he was born,” Dick told me. “When he was eight months old the doctors told us we should just put him away — he’d be a vegetable all his life, that sort of thing. Well those doctors are not alive any more, but I would like them to be able to see Rick now.”

With Dick, 66 years old, running, peddling and swimming, all while pulling Rick, an extra 120 lbs., the fact that Dick can finish marathon’s and triathlon’s, is awfully inspiring for this couch potato. But more inspiring is the love between father and son. One viewing of the video and you already begin to appreciate what’s important in the world. It’s not about making an extra buck, or working a 15 hour day so that your employer gets wealthy, it’s about family, and helping out those less fortunate have a fulfilling life. 

The goal of the Hoyt Foundation Inc. is to integrate the physically challenged into everyday life. One way to accomplish this is to educate the able-bodied, making them more aware of the issues that the disabled face every day. Another is by actively helping the disabled to participate in activities that would otherwise be inaccessible to them.

Let’s wish them well as they get set to, once again, tackle the challenge of the Boston Marathon, in a few weeks.

Disclosure: He holds no position in any other stock mentioned as of 4/09/08.

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Aaron Katsman is Managing Editor of the Israel Opportunity Investor newsletter. He is lead portfolio manager for the Israel Growth Portfolio and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. For more information, go to www.israelnewsletter.com or call 1-888-327-6179, or email aaron@profile-financial.com.

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