Tamara M.’s Story: The Crazy Sign Lady

 

Tamara M. the Crazy Sign Lady at the Susan G. Komen San Diego 3-Day.

If you’ve walked in the Susan G. Komen San Diego 3-Day®, you’ve likely seen—or taken a photo with—Tamara M., known in the Pink Bubble community as “the Crazy Sign Lady.”

Tamara has been a familiar face along the San Diego 3-Day route since 2013, but few know the story behind why she shows up year after year. It started when her sister walked the 3-Day in their hometown, and Tamara decided to cheer her on. 

“I came out to show her my support and that’s all it took. I was hooked,” Tamara explained. “The signs I made for her that first year we simple; teasing her about how many miles she had left and encouraging her at the same time.” 

Tamara M. creating her signs for the Susan G. Komen 3-Day.

But “the Crazy Sign Lady” didn’t truly emerge until the next year, when other 3-Day walkers began noticing her. 

“Some of them hated it at first, and I get it,” she said with a laugh. “The sign telling you how many miles are left when you just started can feel like a lot.” 

Over time, walkers grew to appreciate her presence along the 3-Day route.  

“They’d say, ‘Wow, you’re crazy. You’re everywhere!’” she said. 

 Growing Up With the 3-Day 

Tamara has lived in Arizona for the last seven years but returns to San Diego every fall for the 3-Day. Her children, now 10 and 8, have grown up attending the event, often holding signs beside their mom to support the walkers. 

Tamara M.'s kids at the Susan G. Komen San Diego 3-Day.

“I held signs while I was pregnant. I held signs with a baby carrier on my chest,” she said. “There are walkers who have pictures with my kids. They’ve hugged them and loved them. They’ve grown up with this community, too.” 

A Deep Connection to Walkers 

Tamara M. making her "Crazy Sign Lady" signs to support the walkers of the Susan G. Komen San Diego 3-Day.

While some supporters eventually become walkers, Tamara believes her role is exactly where it needs to be. Her heart has become tied to every person on the 3-Day route and to their stories—walking in celebration, in memory and in support of those undergoing treatment for breast cancer.  

“If I walked, my signs would be missing, and I think I’d be letting the 3-Day family down,” she said. “This is my role. This is how I serve. They walk miles; I hold the signs. We carry each other through.” 

Tamara M. the Crazy Sign Lady at the Susan G. Komen San Diego 3-Day finish line.

And at the finish line, that connection is undeniable. 

“When I’m hugging walkers who are tired and blistered, sometimes I’m physically holding them up,” Tamara explained. “We’re both crying. That’s the symbolism for me—they may be walking miles, but they’re not walking alone.” 

To learn more about the 3-Day visit the3day.org. 

How a 3-Day Training Walk Saved Burt’s Life

Burt L. and his 3-Day training walk group in New York,

At 81, Burt L. has walked the Susan G. Komen 3-Day® 35 times. A longtime training walk leader from New York, he’s spent years helping others prepare for their 60-mile journey. But a few years ago, Burt’s training group found themselves looking out for him. 

“The last couple of years, I’d get an uncomfortable feeling in my chest when we started to walk,” Burt explained. “It would go away, and I felt fine.” 

As the training walks continued around New York, the chest pains kept coming. 

“At that point they told me they would not walk with me again unless I go see a doctor,” he said. “And by God, I needed it. They were right. They saved my life.” 

Burt soon learned he needed a heart valve replacement and later, a pacemaker. These two procedures have allowed him to continue doing what he loves—walking in support of the 3-Day. 

Burt L., a longtime walker of the Susan G, Komen 3-Day, during a heart procedure.

“If it hadn’t been for them yelling at me to go see a doctor, who knows where I would be today,” Burt said.  

Today Burt is feeling good and plans to keep walking the 3-Day for as long as he can. He began walking 22 years ago in honor of his cousin, Judy, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1999. When her cancer metastasized (spread), she faced it with courage until her death in 2004. 

“I need to do all I can to make sure Judy did not die in vain,” Burt said. “I need to do all I can to help bring about the day when no other man or woman, no other family, loses a person they love to breast cancer.” 

In the early years, he walked with Judy’s daughters. And this year, in what he calls “a delicious demonstration of the circle of life,” Burt will walk his 36th 3-Day alongside Judy’s grandson. 

“We are JuJu’s Boys,” he said. “On his first 3-Day and my 36th, we will continue the fight against breast cancer together.” 

Over the last two decades in the Pink Bubble, Burt has raised more than $300,000 for the 3-Day. Each month, Burt and his training groups strive to meet and walk 10 to 20 miles in preparation for the 3-Day. While many of them participate in different 3-Day cities, they take care and motivate each other through every step of training. 

To learn more about the 3-Day visit the3day.org.

“There’s Good in the World”: Amber’s 3-Day Story

Breasties Forever at the 2025 Susan G. Komen 3-Day in San Diego.

Amber B. first heard about the Susan G. Komen 3-Day® from an acquaintance more than 20 years ago. At the time, she didn’t know anyone personally affected by breast cancer, but something about the 3-Day drew her in. She’s been walking and recruiting new people to join her ever since.   

Today, Amber leads Breasties Forever, a small but mighty team that has raised more than $206,000 for the 3-Day.  

“For such a small team, that makes me really proud,” Amber said. 

A Family Affair 

Amber B. and her mom at a 2006 fundraiser for the Susan G. Komen 3-Day in Dallas.

Amber’s 3-Day journey began close to home in Dallas. In those early years, she walked alongside her mom. Soon, her aunt joined. Then some close friends.  

“It became a family affair,” Amber said. 

 In 2017, two women she had gone to high school with joined her in San Diego. One of them is the daughter of a seven-time cancer survivor. They’re still walking together in San Diego every year. 

Team shirts for Amber B.s team at the 2017 Susan G. Komen 3-Day in San Diego.

Her aunt, now in her 70s, walked for 15 years before recently retiring from the 3-Day. 

Amber said the 3-Day experience has been life-changing and credits the Pink Bubble community for bringing her back year after year. 

“Physically, it’s a lot of work. It’s very humbling,” Amber explained. “It makes you believe there’s good in the world to know we’re all there in the Pink Bubble for the same cause and the same fight.” 

Walking Through Pain 

Amber’s commitment to the 3-Day has come with challenges. She has fibromyalgia, but trains year-round. She focuses on keeping her feet healthy and even keeps a walking pad at her desk.  

In 2016, she broke her neck in a car accident, but she still wanted to walk in the 3-Day. She was placed in a halo brace and was incapacitated for several months. While most people would have taken the year off, Amber had already reached her fundraising goal and was determined to walk her first 3-Day in San Diego.  

Amber B. wearing a neck collar after she suffered a broken neck. She attended the Susan G. Komen 3-Day a few months after her accident.

“My doctor replaced the halo with a neck collar, and I think I walked 21 miles that year with my broken neck,” Amber explained. “But I loved San Diego and I’ve been walking there ever since.”  

When Cancer Hits Close to Home 

For many years, Amber walked the 3-Day in support of others. Then cancer showed up in her team. 

Breasties Forever at the 2024 Susan G. Komen 3-Day.

 In 2024, Michelle—her close friend and teammate—was diagnosed with breast cancer just one month before the Dallas/Fort Worth event but was able to walk 20 miles with Breasties Forever. By the next year, Michelle returned as a survivor and braved the 2025 San Diego 3-Day that was hit by an unprecedented storm, joined by her husband and the team. 

“It was hard for her, but we kept going and we made it,” Amber said. “We had already been doing the 3-Day so long that when she was diagnosed, she knew she had support and that was amazing.”  

Amber and Breasties Forever at the 2025 San Diego 3-Day.

Then last month, Amber’s mom was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a terminal brain tumor, which further solidified her commitment to the 3-Day. 

 “I have always felt that if we can find a cure for one cancer, we can find a cure for all,” she said. 

 3-Day Fundraising 

A big part of Amber’s 3-Day journey is her dedication to fundraising. This year alone, she has contacted 76 local businesses asking for donations and is working hard to secure corporate matches from her network of family and friends. She has already collected several items for raffles to help her team meet their goal, and to help move the needle closer to a world without breast cancer.  

“I think we will find a cure eventually, but it’s going to take money and it’s going to take dedicated people to do it,” she said. “I plan to keep walking as long as I can and I hope more people will join me.”  

The Breasties Forever at the 2023 Susan G. Komen 3-Day.

In 2022, the friend who first introduced Amber to the 3-Day decades ago reconnected with her on social media, and they walked together again in San Diego. And this year, Amber’s 25-year-old daughter Danielle will walk with Breasties Forever at the 3-Day for the first time. 

To learn more visit the3day.org. 

Statements and opinions expressed are those of the individual and do not express the views or opinions of Susan G. Komen. This information is being provided for educational purposes only and is not to be construed as medical advice. Persons with breast cancer should consult their health care provider with specific questions or concerns about their treatment.??