Introducing the 3-Day Series Walkers – Part 1

Anyone who steps up to the challenge of participating in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day® is making an incredible commitment. The months spent on fundraising strategy and execution, training plans and schedules, prepping, packing and traveling almost make it feel like the Komen 3-Day is your second job (good thing it’s a job you love!).

That’s why it’s especially remarkable when we meet a walker who makes the extraordinary decision to walk in every 3-Day® event in one year. In the past, there have been one or two walkers each year who dedicate themselves to walking the “full series,” but in 2014, we are honored to have eight amazing people taking on the full series and walking in all seven 3-Day events.

Today, let’s meet two of the series walkers, and we’ll introduce you to the rest over the next few days!

Nicole H.

Nicole and her primitive pink friend

What’s your name and where are you from? – My name is Nicole Hercules and I am from St. Peters, Missouri
What is your 3-Day history (how many events have you walked/crewed?) – I began walking the 3-Day in 2010. Last year I completed my 6th event as a walker with the 3-Day.
How/why did you first get involved with the 3-Day? – I became involved with the 3-Day because I lost my mom to breast cancer in 2004. In 2009, I also discovered that I am considered high risk. Those were my main reasons in 2010, now in 2014 there are too many to even count.
Are you part of any teams in 2014? – I am on a team for every 3-Day except for Twin Cities.
What made you decide to do all 7 events this year? – My dad was diagnosed with lung cancer a few days before I left for the Cleveland event last year. He passed away on November 5, 2013. I have now lost two parents to cancer. I will turn 40 in August, and it will be my 10th birthday without my mom. I figured if there was a year to do it, this would be the one.
What are your go-to fundraising strategies? – Ask anyone and everyone. All they can say is no. Also don’t be afraid to try new things. You never know what might take off.
What are you looking forward to the most with your walks this year? – Making a difference and meeting new people. I want to show others that anything can be done if you want it bad enough. There isn’t much in the world that I want more than a cure for cancer.
Is there anything that you’re nervous about? – Not really. Maybe back-to-back 3-Day events; I haven’t ever done those before. Oh and that crazy long bridge in Seattle.
What 3 words would you use to describe the 3-Day? – Hope, Cure, and Love

Melissa P.

Yeah. Melissa looks ready. 🙂

What’s your name and where are you from? – Melissa Province – Minneola, Kansas
What is your 3-Day history (how many events have you walked/crewed?) – 2011 – walked Dallas (with broken foot!); 2012 – walked Dallas; 2013 – walked San Diego [Correction: Melissa walked Seattle in 2013!]
How/why did you first get involved with the 3-Day? – Shortly after my step mother Marcy faced her 2nd diagnosis of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, I decided I wanted to be more actively involved with advocating, awareness and early detection. My grandmother, a breast cancer survivor and one of my biggest motivators, had a huge influence on my decision to get involved with the 3-Day. After all, I had 2 amazing examples of fighters, 2 inspiring stories of hope, and 2 perfect examples of the importance of early detection right before my eyes.
Are you part of any teams in 2014? – I am so excited about my teams this year! In Michigan, I have the honor to walk with Cleveland Cleavage. Twin Cities, I am available if anyone needs another walker to join their team! Philly, I have the privilege to be part of an amazing team known as Breast Friends of Pennsylvania. Seattle is exciting because I will get to walk with my awesome friends as part of Team Tracy! Atlanta, I am joining the Atlanta Alliance. Dallas, I am walking with the Wonder Boobs! San Diego, I get to be reunited with the every so classy and super sassy team that I love with all of my heart, Saving Private Tatas.
What made you decide to do all 7 events this year? – I am a dreamer, so since 2012 I knew that someday I would walk all of the 3-Day events in one year. I like to set insane goals and then go out there and grab them. I wasn’t really sure that this was the year – until my Sole Sister, Nicole [Hercules, a fellow 2014 series walker] called me with the news of her father passing from lung cancer. My immediate response was “I have to walk all 7.” She agreed that she had to as well. We quickly went on a registering spree, and here we are!
What are your go-to fundraising strategies? – The best way to raise money is to simply ask. When people know that you are only “so much” short of a goal, they want to help you. If I am $100 short of hitting the 70% mark, I post that to Facebook. Personally, I think that people enjoy knowing that they were responsible for getting you to the next mile marker. When all else fails, you tell people that your gigantic husband will paint his toenails pink when your account reaches $100, dye his beard pink at $500, dance in a tutu at $1000 and cook pizza in your restaurant all weekend long in a tutu once your reach $2300. It will freak your kids out, but your account fills up pretty quickly!
What are you looking forward to the most with your walks this year? – I love people, so I am most looking forward to making new friends. I am also looking forward to camping in a hot pink tent, and the Macaroni and Cheese.
Is there anything that you’re nervous about? – Nervous, I am! I am absolutely freaking out about hitting my fundraising minimum for all 7 cities. It is such a huge dedication, and I don’t want to fail anyone because I fell short of the fundraising requirements.
What 3 words would you use to describe the 3-Day? – Motivational, Inspirational, Sensational!

Come back to the 3-Day blog tomorrow to meet two more of our full series walkers!

July 2014 3-Day Meet-up Round-up

We hope you all are having a wonderful summer, and we’re happy that so many of you have shared some summertime moments with your Susan G. Komen 3-Day® family! Here are recaps of some of the Komen 3-Day events where we saw you in July!

Michigan

Since the Michigan 3-Day® is just a few weeks away, packing was high on everyone’s minds in July. Michigan participants gathered for packing workshops in Plymouth and Holland. The latter workshop also included a training walk hosted by Michigan 3-Day team the Coconutter Strutters.

Seattle

Coach Aubrey met some new and veteran 3-Day walkers at a fundraising workshop held at Elliott Bay Brewery on July 19. They shared their creative fundraising ideas, went over how to use the Participant Center to personalize their fundraising pages, and discussed how to send emails to potential donors.

Philadelphia

Philly 3-Day crew members were busy with meetings and get-togethers in July. The crew captains gathered for an info meeting, complete with a fun selfie.

Over 40 crew members also got together for “All Crew Day,” a fundraiser planned by Philadelphia’s senior crew captains. Crew veterans and newbies sported their favorite pink gear and gathered to learn about the 3-Day, meet their crew teammates and get pumped for the event while raising money for the Philadelphia 3-Day Crew.

Atlanta

The Atlanta 3-Day had its Training Kick-Off Event at the Buckhead New Balance store. It was a great event with about 30 of Atlanta’s most energetic 3-Day walkers. They were led by training walk leaders Renee M. and Shawna L. There was lots of shopping done, and lots of great connections made!

Dallas/Fort Worth

The 3-Day hosted a special event for bloggers in the Dallas/Fort Worth area in July. These well-known internet personalities enjoyed a yummy brunch while learning all about the 3-Day. Many of them will be part of the Dallas/Fort Worth 3-Day in November, where they’ll be volunteering or walking, and all of them will be talking about their 3-Day experiences on their blogs. Walkers and crew members gathered on a beautiful morning in Southlake to celebrate the Training Kick-Off Event.

San Diego

Walkers also gathered for the Training Kick-Off Event in San Diego last month. Everyone enjoyed some time with a New Balance rep, then a nice group stretch followed by a 3- or 7-mile training walk. There was even a pit stop along the way, manned by some San Diego crew captains.

Bonus Meet-up!

Boston-area walkers and crew members held a reunion dinner in July, before many of them head out to participate in the 3-Day in Philadelphia, Atlanta and Seattle.

August’s meet-ups will include our first two 3-Day events (woo-hoo for Michigan and Twin Cities!), which will have loads of pictures and recaps. Make sure you’re following the 3-Day on social media so you don’t miss a shot.

Part 3 of the ABC’s of the Susan G. Komen 3-Day Crew

Welcome to part three of the ABC’s of the Komen 3-Day Crew! We’ve shared letters A – E, F – J and this week, we’re excited to present letters K through O. We invite you to tell us your ideas for each letter here or on Facebook, and to share these images with your family and friends. (To see the 3-Day walker version of the ABC’s, click here!)

The 3-Day is a place where crew members go above and beyond to show kindness in everything they do. They work long hours and get little sleep. They work together, with strangers for the good of a common cause. They’re ready for anything that could pop up at any time. Being on the 3-Day is like living in a perfect world for three days: kindness, goodwill, adventure and the joy of working towards one amazing goal – ending breast cancer forever.

See also: Knife (This may seem like an odd thing to spotlight on the ABC’s, but many veteran crew members would agree about the importance of a good cutting tool. Whether it’s for opening the dozens of boxes of packaged food at pit stops, quickly slicing through zip ties to take down route arrows, or cutting apart cardboard for walkers to sit on at lunch, having a good knife is important for a lot of the crew.)

Being a 3-Day crew member is not an easy alternative to walking. Many crew jobs require great physical demands from team members, including heavy lifting. This could include loading luggage onto gear trucks, moving bags of ice or boxes of food, or even setting up the large tent structures in camp.

See Also: Lasting Memories (You’ll make lots of them!); Legacy Pins

Some of the coolest looking crew members you’ll see are on the Route Safety crew. They’re the ones on motorcycles, patrolling the route to ensure safety and monitoring intersections to make sure walkers get safely across. And if those motorcycles are occasionally wearing giant pink bras, then you know you’re on the 3-Day for sure.