Pink is a beautiful color. It is a color that brings people together every October in honor of breast cancer awareness month. Wearing pink, however, is not enough. Wearing pink may raise awareness, but it will not cure breast cancer. It will not save lives.
Last month I walked my second Susan G. Komen Philadelphia 3-Day. Participating, at least for me, was not an act of bravery. Walking was an opportunity, a way for me to do something beyond wearing pink.
If you have ever considered being a part of the Susan G. Komen 3-Day®, you too can be a part of something huge. Here are my 10 reasons to go for it and sign up:
The camaraderie. There is a sense of friendship and oneness amongst the walkers that is truly something you do not sense until you experience it for yourself. It is there from the Opening Ceremony to the closing moments.
The personal fulfillment. Walking 60 miles in three days is no easy feat. Last year during my first Komen 3-Day, I got to mark it off my bucket list. This year I came back to get that incredible feeling of personal accomplishment once again.
The exercise. You know those people who set their fitness trackers and set out to reach 10,000 steps in a day? They’ve got nothing on you! Between the training walks to the actual event, you will blow that number out of the water before lunchtime.
To meet long lost relatives. Well, sort of. Last year, early on the first day my walking partner and I began talking with other walkers along the route, as we did often during the event. One woman asked us if it was our first time participating, and we responded that indeed it was our first. She looked at us, smiled and said, “Welcome to the family.” Now I know just what she meant.
The great company. You will meet some of the most fantastic people, people who you would not likely have met otherwise. Learning their stories and reasons for being in attendance was like emotionally uplifting icing on the cake.
The physical challenge. Walking 60+ miles in 3 days is no easy task. Especially when you add on hills, inclement weather, and a few nagging blisters. Yet everyone is celebrated, no matter when they walk across the finish line.
The crew. What makes these three days so special, so life-changing, is not just the walkers. The crew is equally passionate and hardworking. The 3-Day would be nothing without them.
The fun. From the zany t-shirts and outfits on some of the walkers to the pure silliness of the crew, there is a lot of fun to be had at the 3-Day. When it began to pour mid-way through our second day, Trina and I just laughed and laughed about the ridiculousness of walking (or more like sloshing through) 11 more miles in the pouring rain.
The sense of community. The support of the local communities through which we walked is such a huge motivator for getting through the day. The people who stand outside their homes, schools, and businesses to cheer on the walkers make the trek all the more worthwhile.
The lifelong memories. Participating in the 3-Day gave me a deeper connection to what is really important. In addition to the fun that we had, and the physical challenge too, we never ever forgot that our purpose was to honor the lost, applaud the survivors, and support those who are still fighting the good fight.
October is over, but the fight against breast cancer continues. Are YOU ready to join us?
Jessica Cohen is a writer of social good, a health enthusiast, and a greener living advocate. Her website, EatSleepBe.com, a guide for being kinder to yourself, to others, and to the planet. Jessica also works as a web content creator and strategic social-media consultant.
Soon, the route headed south into Richardson and pit stop 2, where the theme was “Wish for the Cure”, complete with magic lamps and “flying” carpets.
Even early in the day, it was clear that the Dallas/Fort Worth community would be a huge part of the 3-Day weekend; walkers rarely went more than a few blocks without hitting a private cheering station, school, or even just neighbors outside their houses cheering them on.
DFW is “Komen Kountry,” and some of the most amazing cheering stations walkers saw all weekend were the ones put on by Susan G. Komen; they literally rolled out the pink carpet and had special goodies for walkers on each of the three days.
We were moved by a speech from Sara, a young breast cancer survivor, and we celebrated the top fundraisers, top training walk leader and Milestone Award winner.
Even with the rain, there were cheering stations a’plenty on Beltline Road, leading into a pit stop in Addison Circle.
Walkers faced a long stretch between pit stop 2 and lunch, but a huge public cheering station just before lunch to push walkers that last little way. Lots of supporters from far away locales (New Jersey, Boston) flew here to be with their walkers. By the time most walkers reached lunch at Campbell Green Recreation Center, the rain had stopped and walkers enjoyed the great park with a wide trail.
A “paw-some” cheering station set up by Lone Star Puppy Raisers greeted walkers after lunch with almost a dozen four-legged friends. From there, the route went through Far North Dallas, then wrapped up down Vitruvian Way, where (not surprisingly) people continued cheering walkers in all the way back into camp.
Beyond that, we heard another powerful speech from Robin, a 10-year walker and 10-year survivor, and from Miguel Perez, the Susan G. Komen VP of Affiliate Network. We also honored Dallas/Fort Worth’s Local Impact Award winner and heard moving messages from the DFW Youth Corps.
From there, walkers trekked through beautiful Park Cities, finding yet another public cheer station in Curtis Park, then walked around Goar Park. Up the route, walkers spent time on Lakeside Drive next to Exall Lake, a great photo op. Pit 2 was at Cole Park, then walkers circled around Turtle Creek before arriving at Reverchon Park for a gorgeous and shady lunch spot.
From there, it was up to the Katy Trail and into the home stretch past American Airlines HQ and Victory Park, the West End Marketplace and another big cheering station. The route passed Dealey Plaza (with the Book Depository and the “grassy knoll”), an important location in American history. Numerous iconic photo stops dotted the last five miles of the route: the big red courthouse, red Mobil Pegasus statue, and the bronze cattle drive statues leading up to city Hall and pit stop 3.
Main Street Garden Park (the site of last year’s Day 3 lunch stop), and Deep Ellum were the last couple of sights before walkers were routed into Fair Park and the finish line.
