Board of Directors

Duane Ernest Fritchie, born April 15th, 1950. I grew up near Lee's Summit, Missouri on a small farm. My father starred in sports at Kansas City Northeast High School in football, basketball, and track and field. My three brothers all stood out in various sports; three of us wrestled. My high school wrestling coach, Gary Sage, and college coaches Omar Frank and Roger Denker were all excellent. My father was killed in a railroad accident my senior year in high school and my coaches became father figures and role models for me as a young man. My focus at Wrestling MS is about providing opportunities for our group to get together and train together. Riding is a great way to socialize before and after rides especially and to support each other in getting fit and staying more fit to help counter some of the negative effects of MS.

I am Wendy Kite. I am on the Board of the Kansas City Chapter of WrestlingMS. I am responsible for marketing and fundraising. Walking through life with MS is challenging since, for the many of us who battle it, it is an invisible disease. People see us and say things like, "you don't look sick," and "you look like you're doing fine," and "I get tired too..." You see, at the beginning, I didn't want to let anyone other than immediate family know about my illness. I didn't look any different. My treatment was very easy to take and private. I was never hospitalized due to symptoms. I was able to continue my career. So life just went on. I was afraid that if I shared at work my capabilities would be judged and I would be looked at as someone who couldn't perform my duties as an elementary school teacher. I had many fears of stigmas being attached to me due to the lack of understanding from those who don't know anyone who has battled this disease. I think many of us have this same fear. The reason I joined WrestlingMS and that I am passionate about this organization is that after I was first diagnosed in 2017 I felt very alone. In 2021 I found WrestlingMS and "my people." The people in this group are warriors against a common enemy, Multiple Sclerosis. When we get together to ride our bikes or just to socialize, we don't have to talk about symptoms, treatments, or all the medical rah! rah! but we can. We all know that movement is medicine. We know that our bodies and our minds benefit from spending time on the bike. There are lots of opportunities to get support and be in community. It's a place we all get it and our loved ones (caregivers) know they are part of the team. WrestlingMS is all about being better, stronger, more independent. It is about healing naturally what we can and taking one more step to improve our health. I know there are other organizations that do great things like research and drug development. That's not what WrestlingMS is about. WrestlingMS is all about helping people become healthier through physical activity-particularly cycling. Not only do we encourage cycling, but WrestlingMS provides the bicycles, and associated gear necessary to support those who become members. This doesn't happen without a cost. That's why we fundraise. Please consider supporting our mission financially.

On my 17th birthday, I lost sight in my left eye. I thought it was a blurry contact, but as I’m sure you can guess: it wasn’t. I was able to gain my eyesight back with steroids and graduated high school. I then attended Truman State University from 2010-2013 on a full scholarship, where I received a Bachelor in Creative Writing and a minor in Spanish. Through college, I experienced other symptoms (tingling hands and feet, slow speech) that I wrote off as stress or lack of sleep. But then I started losing sight in my eye again, and I knew it was more. I was officially diagnosed with MS in February 2014, but I’ve lived with symptoms since 2009. Having MS has taught me a lot about empathy, and self-care, and being strong enough to find yourself over and over again. It has also made me even more appreciative for the good things in my life—my job as an Executive Editor at Penguin Random House, where I get to use my passions to help connect people through books and stories; my wonderful family who I wish I could see more; my supportive husband, Dennis, and my furry family (my cat Rey and dog Rusty); and for all the other incredible people and opportunities in my life. I love hanging up my hammock, being out on a paddle board, and reading a book--and of course, I ride my bike with some amazing people. I joined Wrestling MS back in 2018, and they have been such an incredible, supportive, and encouraging community to be a part of as I navigate the ever-changing landscape of having MS. Along with being an MS Champion, I serve on the board as Events Planner, planning our two biggest events of the year and helping support all the other little events in between. I hope you can join us for an event sometime! I don’t mean it’s always easy—it’s not—but I do believe having MS has made me a stronger, more empathetic, resiliently-optimistic person.

Les was born in Nebraska and grew up in Iowa. There, he became involved in the sport of wrestling, placing 4th and 2nd in the Iowa State 3A wrestling championship. He credits starting to work in the family landscaping business at age 10 and playing other sports for some of that early success. Wrestling continued to be a dominant theme in his life. He attended Central Missouri State University on scholarship where he achieved several honors: two time All American, four MIAA titles where he was named “Outstanding Wrestler” three times and also was presented the “Vernon Kennedy Award” for top male athlete his senior year. He is a member of UCM HOF, Indianola H.S. HOF, the Legends HOF, and the Missouri Chapter of the National Hall of Fame. After college graduation, he immediately started his highly successful coaching career, both collegiate and high school, including recognition as NCAA Rookie Coach of the Year in 1982 and HS Coach of the Year in Vero Beach, FL in 1985. Les changed careers in 1985, moving into financial services, specializing in life insurance and annuities, where he continued to earn accolades for nearly 30 years. In April 2012, everything changed abruptly with his MS diagnosis. He became very ill, had multiple ER visits and lost his balance. His wrestling buddies rallied around him to create WrestlingMS. With the discipline that he had to have in his wrestling career, he now turned it to fighting the battle with MS. Les has inspired so many by riding 3,000 or more miles a year since 2013. About 38,000 miles in total. Through all of this, Les says raising his sons is the best thing he has ever had a part of doing. Trey is 38 and Zach is 36. His favorite saying is "I may have MS, but MS doesn't have me". DONATE NOW