On Tuesday we had a team meeting to look over and discuss the foundation and Lance’s plans for 2009. There was obviously a lot of excitement amongst the staff about the future, but we never could have imagined that word would travel so fast and we would receive such a great endorsement.

Read all about it on Yahoo News

Thought you all might like to see an op-ed that Lance penned for the Dallas Morning News the other day in support of the proposed smoking ban in Dallas.

Smoking ban is about health, not economics

State houses and city halls increasingly are becoming important theaters of operation in the fight against one of America’s most prolific and ruthless killers. Cancer will claim more than 560,000 lives in our nation this year, and, tragically, many of these losses are preventable.

The Dallas City Council has a great opportunity to make a major advance against cancer this fall, and I am honored to add my voice to the many urging them to extend the ban on smoking. The harmful effects of involuntary smoking are no longer debatable.

In 2006, the U.S. surgeon general concluded that secondhand smoke causes premature death and disease in people who do not smoke. The American Cancer Society estimates that secondhand smoke is responsible for about 3,400 lung cancer deaths in nonsmokers annually. And every year, an estimated 35,000 nonsmokers who live with smokers die of heart disease.

With these grim facts in mind, in 2003, Dallas wisely began prohibiting smoking in municipal worksites, many private worksites and all restaurants. This was an important step, but one that fell short – leaving thousands of patrons and employees…

read the full piece at www.dallasnews.com

Registration for the LIVESTRONG Challenge 2009 opened today. Next year the Challenge will be in Seattle (June 21), San Jose (July 12), Philly (August 23) and Austin (October 24-25). If you register TODAY you can receive $15 dollars off your registration fee. Visit www.livestrongchallenge.org for more information on the event and discount offer.

And if you need more motivation for why you should participate watch the video below.

Thanks to the generous support of people like you we have accomplished a lot of great things in 2008. We also could not be more excited for the opportunities that lie ahead in 2009. To that end we ask you to watch the video below and visit livestrong.org/give to make a difference this holiday season.

Before he left for Training Camp in Europe Lance stopped by the our new HQ (moving in approx. first of the year) and gives you a quick tour of our new space.

This week we will all sit down with family and friends and take part in a holiday that celebrates what we are thankful for in our lives. The below video struck us here and it is safe to say we are all thankful for people like this young boy entering our lives.

And there are so many more, doctors, nurses, social workers, friends, family and even total strangers. So the question is who are you thankful for? Hit the comments section and share who you are thankful for and why with the rest of the community.

Great interview with Kenneth Cole on his new book AWEARNESS about social change. The book features several essays from inspiring people, including our own Lance Armstrong.

As part of an ongoing series, “Letters to the new president” that will run on CNN.com - Lance opens his letter with the following remarks:

“Here’s something that should outrage you: Every day, more than 1,500 Americans die of cancer. Our federal government knows how to prevent many of these losses. Tragically, its attention has simply been elsewhere.”

To read his whole letter visit CNN.com

Lance Armstrong is now 3-for-3 after entering his third cycling competition over the last two weekends, winning the Cat 1 class at the Rocky Hill Roundup in Smithville, Texas on Sunday.

Lance also spent some time working in the wind tunnel last week.

To keep up with the latest on Lance’s return to cycling, visit LIVESTRONG.com

Last night Lance was in San Francisco at the Web 2.0 Summit. Below is the keynote he gave. It is about 40 minutes long, but well worth it in which he talks about a range of subjects including Twitter, Brett Favre, his comeback to cycling and even LL Cool J. So check it out.