Beth and I met in 6th grade. We had every single class together in 6th grade. She was my first real friend and we became close very fast. The funny thing is, we never had another class together again! All throughout junior high and high school, we stayed close. We both went off to college, got married, had kids...and remained friends throughout. I even still have the very first letter she sent me when we left for college. That was BEFORE email, people! Fast forward to now...her mom is a 10-year breast cancer survivor. And it hasn't been easy for her mom or their family. Beth did the Avon 2-day Walk for Breast Cancer last year and she said it was an experience that changed her life. So this year...I decided to join her. She has put together an amazing team of 17 incredible women who are doing the Santa Barbara Avon 2-Day Walk for Breast Cancer. Our team is called Walking For The Girls! We all have to raise a minimum to be able to walk and so far our team has raised almost $28,000!!!
Here is another reason i'm doing this walk:
This is my dad. He was a great dad. He worked so hard for his family during the week and on the weekend he would shuttle my siblings and I all over the place to different swim meets. Every weekend. Being a parent now, I know how much he did for us!! He was active, loved biking and swimming, hiked the Appalacian Trail, loved to travel, drink good wine and eat good food. He was diagnosed with multiple myeloma and we lost him almost 4 years ago to that cancer. My mom is a 2-time cancer survivor as well. I know that even though i'm raising money and walking for breast cancer, I am walking for my mom and dad and everyone else affected by cancer.
It will be an honor to walk with my team in September for the Avon Walk. We will walk 26.2 miles on Saturday, shower in a big rig at the end of the day, spend the night in tents, and then walk 13.1 miles the next time. It's going to be hard, but nothing will compare to what Beth's family went through and what my family went through. So keep me in your thoughts the weekend of September 11th and 12th as I walk with my team for breast cancer. We are In It To End It!!
If you want to check out my sponsor page, the link is HERE. THANKS to many of you who have already supported me. I think it's a super important topic to talk about because cancer affects so many people. You can BET i'm taking my camera with me to document every mile we walk. My walking team doesn't know they have a little paparrazi on their hands, LOL!!
Thanks for listening today and stopping by everyone!
That's so sad about your dad, and your mum and friends mum too. I think what you're doing is awesome, and wow! What a huge amount of money you have raised so far. I can't wait to hear how you go, and to see some of those photos you take :) Love your beautiful layouts too :) :)
ReplyDeleteI am sorry cancer ahs affected your life in devastating ways.
ReplyDeleteI am glad you shared. I lost my sister to brain cancer several years ago and my brother in law is in the final (4th stage) of renal lung cancer. Cancer is horrid and leaves in its wake so much heartache.
Good luck and God bless you on your walk. Anything we can all do to help find a cure and help foe those families affected is worth all we can do! ~♥
Good luck on the walk. Ill be crossing my fingers that its a nice weekend for it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing a little piece of you. I'm sorry for your dad. That has to be hard. Good luck on the walk!! Such a wonderful thing you're doing!
ReplyDeleteCancer is such a terrible disease. It's devistating to the cancer patients as well as the families. I lost an Aunt to cancer just a few weeks ago.
ReplyDeleteTFS your story, Mara! Kudos on taking action and earning money to fund research to cure cancer!
Thanks for sharing your story Mara... Good luck on the the walk!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing Mara, I'm so sorry your family has had to go through such struggles with cancer. I think it's fabulous that you are going to do this walk! I'll be praying and thinking of you:) I love both your LO's...such sweetest in both of them. Hugs...
ReplyDeleteWhat a huge amount you guys have raised! Way to go! :) Good luck with the walk and fab layouts!
ReplyDeleteOh Mara, what a touching post. I lost my dad 2 years ago (and he hiked the AT several times!)so I'm very sorry for your loss.
ReplyDeleteHere's to the walk and the money you've already rasied!
These are lovely mara, your design style is fabulous
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry about the cancer that has touched your family. It's such a terrible disease! It has also touched my family many times. My mother had breast cancer, but died from ovarian, and my sister did too.
ReplyDeleteKudos to you for going on the walk! You've almost reached your goal! :)
So sorry about your Dad. He sounds like he was such a wonderful, loving person. Good luck on the walk and congrats on all the $$ you all have raised.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful tribute. This is close to my heart as well as my mom is continuing her journey diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She is currently in remission!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great cause Mara! Both of your LOs are gorgeous as always! It is quite scary how many lives are affected by some type of cancer.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful LO! way to go on your fundraising- best of luck on the walk/run! i know you'll do awesome. Thanks taking the journey.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful LO! I worked the walk last year in LA and was signed up to work the same rest stop in Santa Barbara but cannot make it this year;0( The reason I am in Kansas is because my Dad is fighting cancer, not breast cancer, but throat cancer. So I am with him and my mom right now. This is great you are doing this and probably would have ran accross one another if I could have gone this year.
ReplyDeleteHugs xx
Cecelia Blanco