Over the last 18 years, Kit L. has participated in 40 3-Day events! With over $78,000 raised towards the fight against breast cancer, we honor Kit as the 2022 Chicago 3-Day Crew Impact Award winner. Fun fact about Kit, she has traveled to 100 countries and has visited all seven continents!
We asked one of her friends and fellow 3-Day participants to provide a brief testimonial to her greatness!
“Kit puts the ‘fun’ in fundraising. She is a fun-loving world traveler who has a wicked sense of humor. I first met Kit in 2010 during a freak, driving rainstorm in San Diego. Kit was in charge of the pink info tent and it became ground zero for operation ‘Dry Housing.’ Her ability to calm, nurture and relocate walkers to local accommodations was seamless. She was an unstoppable force in calling hotels and cab companies. Without her efforts supporting the staff and the rest of the crew, that walk would have turned out much differently. She taught this newbie Sr. Crew Captain that no task is impossible. The only way to eat an elephant is to eat one bite at a time.
In addition to her yearly gig as the San Diego Sr. Volunteer Captain, she has worked as a Sr. Route Captain, Sweep Captain and Pit Captain in multiple cities. She volunteers in honor of her close friend, Linda, who lost her battle to breast cancer. She has committed to continuing this fight until there is a cure. Kit embodies the spirit of William Butler Yeats; ‘There are no strangers here, just friends we haven’t met.’ Or in her case, BREAST FRIENDS. I am proud of all of Kit’s contributions, both in time and money to our 3-Day community. But I am prouder to call her my friend.” ? Rainy R.
“I have only known Kit for two months but in that short time she has stepped up to be a great support and friend to me. She has helped introduce me to the crew, the key players and the procedures that work. She checks in on me and makes me feel supported and loved. I have truly enjoyed our short time working together and I look forward to a lot more events with her!” ? Crew and Volunteer Coordinator, Kristin B.
We’re so thankful for all our wonderful Crew! Without the Crew’s hard work, the 3-Day would not be possible. Stay tuned throughout the rest of the 2022 Susan G. Komen 3-Day series to see who else wins the Crew Impact Award!
We’d like to congratulate Rachel B. on being our 2022 Chicago 3-Day Milestone Award Winner! Rachel has participated in 28 3-Days over the last 17 years and has raised over $241,000 to date.
We asked Rachel how she got involved in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day, and how she and her team continue to be outstanding fundraisers.
“My Mom had just finished her radiation treatment after her breast cancer diagnosis when I saw an advertisement for the Susan G. Komen 3-Day. I knew that I needed to take action against the disease so my younger sister and a friend joined me for the 2005 Arizona 3-Day. We saw all of the fun names of the teams that were formed and decided on Bouncin’ Buckeyes. Buckeyes refers to our Ohio roots and Bouncin’ is a reference to the boobs. Our first year my sister raised her money within two weeks. She showed me what is possible when you ask for a certain amount of money and also inform the donor of your deadline.
It’s important to remember why you are walking and to share this in your donation requests. I can’t imagine not having all of the memories with my Mom since she was diagnosed in 2004. I try not to take it for granted as I know many that do not get the extra time. I’m grateful for the advances in research and treatment that Susan G. Komen has provided and I know the money that I raise is making a difference.
My Mom’s breast cancer was found from a mobile mammogram bus visiting her place of employment. They compared her mammogram to the previous year and saw a difference and sent her for a lumpectomy. Early detection and annual mammograms saved her life. Our team is a super-fundraising team so we have always had a goal to raise more than the minimum. Our supporters are generous and support us with donations to achieve our goals year over year. I also send emails throughout the year so that I am sharing our progress. After the walk, I send all of my donors a thank you card made with some 3-Day pictures and include a donation form for the next year’s 3-Day.”
We also asked some of her friends to provide a brief testimonial to her greatness!
“Rachel is the reason I joined the 3-Day. Her passion is contagious. She works countless hours to raise funds for herself and others. Her selfless acts and drive to raise awareness are inspiring.” — Heather G.
“Rachel is an amazing person and a great team captain. She keeps us all focused and without her we’d be lost.” — Billy G.
“Rachel is the most committed individual I’ve ever known. Her passion for the 3-Day and the fight against breast cancer personifies the statement, ‘We will never quit!!!’ That is why she leads our team.” — Bobbi D.
Rachel shared with us, she is a Rodan + Fields skincare consultant and was given the opportunity to join her team on a mission trip to Ethiopia with Ordinary Hero. Rachel visited multiple orphanages and learned how critical food is to our lives. She now sponsors two families in Ethiopia, providing monthly food and allowing their children to go to school. Rachel has been back to Ethiopia once already and hopes to go again in 2023.
Stay tuned throughout the rest of the 2022 Susan G. Komen 3-Day Series for our other Milestone Award Winners!
The 2022 Susan G. Komen New England 3-Day boasted 800 walkers and 175 crew, all of whom contributed to the $2.7 million we raised in the fight against breast cancer. Our top fundraisers were recognized Saturday morning of the event at our Bank of America Breakfast of Champions. Bank of America celebrates our fundraising champions with a collective $25,000 donation to jump start participants on their 2023 fundraising! Join us in congratulating these top fundraisers for their incredible achievements.
Our first top fundraiser is being acknowledged for multiple accomplishments! Corey H. is our Rookie of the Year as well as our Top Individual Fundraiser, raising over $23,000 for his first ever 3-Day.
Let’s hear from Corey in his own words about his reason for committing to the 3-Day and fundraising for Susan G. Komen:
“I commit in honor of my wife, Sarah. Sarah was a talented photographer, an animal lover, star athlete, and a fierce competitor. More importantly, she was a patient, fun, and loving mother to our two young daughters. And she was my best friend, partner for 17 years, and wife for 12 years. She was the one who always made sure we had a vegetable at every meal, that we consistently got exercise as a family, and she managed the calendar of most social and family events that filled up our weekends. She was healthy and fit at 39 years old. Last year, we were skiing in March and she had just convinced me to buy season ski passes for the next year as our girls were finally reaching the point that we could all ski as a family for a full day. Two months later, she was in a wheelchair ? diagnosed with stage 4 Triple Negative Breast cancer that had spread to her bones throughout her body. There was no known history of cancer anywhere in her family, so this diagnosis came as a complete shock to all of us. Her treatment options were limited because her blood counts were so low, but she fought hard and recovered enough that we were able to make many great memories as a family last fall. She passed away on January 3rd of this year at the age of 39, just seven months after her diagnosis. A few weeks before she passed away, Sarah underwent genetic testing and learned she had a rare mutation of the CDH1 gene, which significantly increased her chances of developing breast cancer. That mutation also means that each of our daughters now have roughly a 50:50 chance of developing breast cancer as well. So, while I’m walking in Sarah’s honor and memory, I’m also walking for my daughters. I’m walking to help find a cure for this disease before they have a chance of developing it and so it doesn’t take anybody else’s mom, wife, daughter or sister the way it did to us.
Our Top Fundraising Team is Sarah’s Army, captained by our Rookie of the Year and Top Individual Fundraiser, Corey H.! Together their 14 team members raised over $48,000 in their first year as a team.
A fun fact about Sarah’s Army: Team members came from four states to participate in the 2022 New England 3-Day, and they have an “extended team” that’s participating in the San Diego 3-Day and people competing in the Chicago Marathon to help find the cures for breast cancer.
Our Top Crew Fundraiser is Kristin S., who raised nearly $6,000 for the 2022 New England 3-Day and has raised almost $46,000 in her lifetime! Kristin has participated in 14 3-Day events and received a $300 donation from Bank of America towards her 2023 3-Day fundraising.
A fun fact about Kristin: She has walked 9 years, all in Twin Cities, and this is her fifth year crewing (twice in San Diego, once in Seattle, with this being the second in Boston), plus she volunteered one year! All of her crewing has been at Pit Stop 4, where she has a pink megaphone that she likes to use to cheer everyone on .
Our Small but Mighty Team is Walkers for Knockers! The 2022 New England 3-Day was their first, and in total they raised just over $40,000.
A fun fact about Team Walkers for Knockers: They are all fitness freaks with hearts bigger than the states they’re from!
Our Top Youth Corps Fundraisers are Grace and Dylan R., each raising $1,658! They’ve each participated in three 3-Days, with Grace raising $4,841 in her lifetime and Dylan raising $7,453 in his lifetime.
Fun facts about Grace and Dylan: Grace loves to read and will be starting in a communications magnet this fall. She is an amazing friend, a volunteer camp counselor and swim instructor. Dylan loves skiing, baseball, and swimming. He loves to help younger kids, he serves as a swim instructor and swim team group leader and really cares for the kids. In turn they adore him and love to cheer him on too.
Thank you so much to all walkers and crew who raised $2.7 million to find the cures for breast cancer at the 2022 New England 3-Day!
