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Update! I’ll be walking in my FOURTH walk in October!
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As a part of Affiliate Marketers Give Back, I will be undertaking my second Avon Walk for Breast Cancer this October 18th and 19th in New York. I completed this walk back in 2012 and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life for many reasons. I could use your support this year in a lot of different ways.
(Don’t want to read the whole post? You can jump to my Donation Page if that is the only thing you are looking for!)
Why I Walk
I posted the first time I did the walk about my two grandmothers. Grandma Emma is a breast cancer survivor. Grandma Rose, unfortunately, is not. Her breast cancer was so advanced once detected that it spread to her lungs and other places. We lost her very quickly. I walked also for a handful–maybe 10?–of other people close to me whose lives had been touched by breast cancer.
As I prepared for that walk and word got around that I was doing it, I was shocked at the number of friends and family members who told me that they were breast cancer survivors. Cousins, co-workers, neighbors, Bunco group members, Zumba girls. I would say that the number of people I am walking for this year is probably more like 40 or 50.
As Vanessa and Shawn and I walked the last 13 miles on that Sunday in New York, trying to muster up as much energy and enthusiasm as we could while braving blisters and chaffing and muscle aches, I was inspired by all of the people around me. Men and women who fought breast cancer bravely were walking right along side us (and finishing before us!). They bore shirts with their pictures and held signs with their stories. It was impossible not to be forever touched by it.
I have two daughters and three nieces. I have a sister and a sister-in law. Statistically, one of us will be diagnosed with breast cancer. The thought of it being any one of those 7 literally brings me to tears. Will it be caught early? How invasive will it be? What can I do NOW to help??
How You Can Support Me
I’m asking for your support and I will take it any way that I can get it.
First, I need donations to even be able to walk. Last time I received $5 donations from a LOT of people and those $5 donations ended up adding up a lot. I need to raise $1800 total in order to be able to walk (that doesn’t include the hotel and flights that I pay for separately). You can make donations quickly and easily online. If you donate and want me to walk for someone in particular for you, let me know who that is and I will add their name to the list that I will carry through the event.
Second, you can help me spread the word about the walk. The more people who read this post, the more people who are going to help me and help support the walk in general. Tweet the post. Share it on FB. I’m not above begging when it comes to something like this.
Third, when it comes time for the walk, keep an eye on us that weekend and cheer us on. Chances are pretty good that I am going to end up having to get a cortisone injection in my ankle to be able to pull off the whole 40 miles, but I am dedicated to completing it. The people who commented on pictures and texted me during those last 5-10 miles last time were what got me through it. For a little while the text messages were the only thing that kept me from wanting to just stop and wait for a bus to come by and get me. It really made that much of a difference!
The Education is Important
Yes, this walk is a fundraiser. And it raises a LOT of money for some great causes. But it is also about education. It’s about awareness. You might say to yourself “but people talk about breast cancer all the time.” There’s a reason for that. Every 13 minutes a life is lost to breast cancer. Early detection is so incredibly important–lifesaving. Events like the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer play a big part in that by educating people, paying for educational programs, and supporting educational programs financially. In addition, there is still the hope that funds raised will lead to a cure.
Can I count on you to support me in some way? Big or little, I can use all of it that I can get!
Well, even though you didn’t mention you have a mom too, I’m still going to donate to the cause. 😉
HA! Technically, I have a mom, a mother-in-law, an aunt…I was thinking about the next generation. But you are right. If I were to count up ALL of the women close to me, I don’t even want to think about how many will end up being diagnosed with breast cancer. At least 1 of the Zumba girls. At least 2 of my neighbors. Numbers in the abstract don’t mean much to people but start putting actual names and faces with those numbers and it is depressing.