I Completed a Marathon and Raised $1800 for Breast Cancer.

Avon Breast Cancer Walk is now over! It was quite an experience.  

Here are my highlights.

   1. Raised $1839 for breast cancer research and treatment for those in need

       2.The walk on Sat started at Fort Funston and the opening ceremony was very touching.  I learned that every three minutes a someone is diagnosed with breast cancer. Not great news.

       3. There were 3800 walkers registered for this event and as of Sat they had raised 5 ½ million dollars.

       4. I walked over the Golden Gate Bridge twice without vomiting (I am afraid of heights).

       

      5. My favorite team was one called Save Second Base.  I also liked Hookers for Hooters and Dudes for Boobs.

        

       6. The markers were off. My Garman which is uses a GPS for measuring said I walked 27.75 miles. The markers for the walk said it was 26.2 miles.  The problem is that at 26.2 miles I was still ok. At 27 miles I was kind of pissed off and the last .75 miles were a killer!!  But I did it, and now I have accomplished my 30 year dream of completing a marathon, and did it for a great cause. Plus, instead of being in the back of the pack like I always am when I run, I was in the first 150 out of 3800 walkers to finish. 

      7. I'm not going back for the 13.1 mile second day walk. I don't want to blow my knees out!

Why I Am Walking

The number 40 is big one for me this year. It is my 40^th year high school reunion and our class has a website where we can plan the reunion and reconnect with old friends. It is fun and often touching. When I was in 6-8^th grade Carol Smith and I were extremely good friends. By 9^th grade we grew apart and had not spoken for 44 years. Thanks to Facebook and the CHS website we have become friends again. Carol is a 16 year breast cancer survivor. I cannot imagine how I would feel if she had not survived and we had not renewed our friendship. So I am walking to keep friendships alive.

Did you know that three million women are living with breast cancer -- and one third of them don’t even know it? Even more startling, breast cancer kills approximately one woman every 13 minutes, robbing us of our mothers and grandmothers, our sisters, and our best friends. No one knows what causes breast cancer or how it can be prevented and there is currently no known cure.

Knowing these statistics and since cancer has unfortunately touched my friends and family , I feel even more compelled to do something to bring us one step closer to finding a cure. This July I will join thousands of others in San Francisco to walk at least 26.2 miles in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. My goal is to walk 26.2 miles the first day and 13.1 the second. (almost 40 miles)

As part of this commitment, I have agreed to raise at least $1,800 for the Avon Foundation Breast Cancer Crusade. Since 1992, the Crusade has raised and awarded more than $525 million for the cause. That money is used for medical research, clinical care, support services, education and early detection programs .While researchers have made significant progress in the last few years, there’s still more that needs to be done.

If you would like to help this cause please consider donating $4.00, $40.00, or even $400.00 to keep the theme of 40 going, or any amount you wish. If there is someone you would like to honor please let me know and I will put their name on my shirt.

You can donate online on my website: http://info.avonfoundation.org/site/TR/Walk/SanFrancisco?px=4311616&pg=personal&fr_id=1950&et=RFS37SRHTRL7xdCTgSN-ug..&s_tafId=433070

or let me know if you would prefer to send a check.

Thanks for your support!

Marcy