JASON’S STORY

People often ask why I walked away from a successful Wall Street career to start a nonprofit. It’s a fair question. On paper, it made zero sense.

My answer is simple: I wanted my life to make a positive difference for others, and Endure to Cure became my path to doing so. When I took the leap in 2008, I told myself that even if it didn’t work out, I’d never have to wonder “what if.” Eighteen years later, I haven’t regretted it for a second.

Here’s how it happened.

Living the Dream, Running on Empty

After earning my undergraduate degree at the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business, I began my career at Morgan Stanley. I went on to earn my MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and continued my career at Robert W. Baird & Co. I loved the markets: the intellectual challenge, the pace, and the stakes riding on split-second decisions.

To the outside world, I was living the dream. Inside, I felt spiritually bankrupt. I knew I needed a change, but I had no idea what that change should be.

Then came Kilimanjaro.

The Mountain

On the brink of what felt like an existential crisis, I took a vacation from work to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. Four days into the six-day climb, at Karanga Camp, at an elevation of more than 13,000 feet., I felt my grandfather’s presence.

Before he passed away from cancer, he had asked me to carry on his spirit. I knew what he meant, but not how I would honor it. On that mountain, it became clear: my purpose was to devote my energy to helping others.

Less than a month later, I resigned. I hadn’t planned to do it that morning. I simply knew it was time to follow my heart.

Why I Endure

Today, my mission is to improve the lives of children battling cancer, and to show that with vision, determination, and a purpose greater than ourselves, we can achieve far more than we ever imagined.

Since 2008, Endure to Cure has raised over $2 million and helped thousands of children and their families.

As part of Team Endure to Cure, I take on some of the most grueling endurance events and climbs on the planet to raise funds for children with cancer and their families. I also hope my journey inspires others to discover what they’re truly capable of.

Let me be clear: I am not a natural endurance athlete. In 2005, the farthest I had ever run was five miles. A marathon seemed outlandish at the time, and an Ironman unthinkable. I’d never heard of an Ultraman until I was invited to race one, and I never in my life imagined people would willingly go into the Sahara Desert, let alone run 156 miles across it.

The truth is, I don’t enjoy long-distance running. I don’t swim, bike, and run ultra distances for fun. What I love is crossing the finish line knowing that every mile helped a child or family who needed it.

What keeps me going is purpose, and the chance to step far outside my comfort zone to create real change. I’ll never truly know what a child goes through during chemotherapy. But when an event pushes me to my limit, I think of their strength, and it carries me forward. It has taught me that our limits exist only where our vision ends.

Join Us!

Together, the Endure to Cure community brings hope to children battling cancer and their families. That’s why I founded Endure to Cure, and I invite you to join us.

Jason Sissel

P.S. Want to follow my journey more closely? Visit my website or follow me on Instagram.