They’re the helpful cheerleaders on the other end of the phone call or email when you have questions or concerns. They’re the smiling faces welcoming you and your teams at meet-ups and workshops and building up community excitement for the 3-Day. They’re the guiding hands leading the crew captains and teams to greatness. That’s right, they’re your Susan G. Komen 3-Day® coaches!
As we get ready to return to each of the seven splendid 3-Day locations, we wanted to take a few minutes to catch up with the coaches from each event. Today, the Seattle 3-Day Coaches are in the spotlight!
Since last year’s 3-Day, the Seattle team has seen some changes.
- Paula, Seattle’s Participant Support Coach for the past 2 years (and a 3-Day coach since 2005), retired over the summer and has been enjoying time with her husband, kids and grandsons. She will be cheering at the San Diego 3-Day in November.
- Jon, who has been the Crew & Volunteer Coordinator in Seattle since 2014 moved on to the 3-Day Event Planning team in the spring, where he has been helping plan all seven 3-Day events. Jon will be working on staff at every 2016 3-Day (except Dallas/Fort Worth, where he’ll be walking for the first time), so you can still say hi to him in Seattle next week!
So that brings us to the stars of today’s show, the current team of Seattle coaches. Let’s cozy up with Aubrey, Jen and Kathleen and see what they had to say about each other!
Aubrey (Seattle Local Events Coach) 
Kathleen says, “Aubrey is super enthusiastic about her love for the 3-Day. It is obvious she wears her heart on her sleeve and wants everyone to have an amazing experience.”
Jen shared, “Aubrey is so passionate and dedicated to the cause. She has a very personal connection to the cause as her mother is a survivor. She is also a longtime participant and fundraiser, which means she really knows how to personally connect with the Seattle walkers.”
Jen (Seattle Participant Support Coach)
Prior to joining the Seattle team, Jen was the Participant Support Coach for the Philadelphia 3-Day. You can see what she shared about herself last year here.
Aubrey had this to say about Jen: “Three words (okay, four) to describe Jen are organized, forward-thinking, and effective. She has the ability to jump in with both feet and get to know participants on a personal level without much effort. It just comes naturally to Jen. Even though I haven’t worked on a 3-Day event with Jen, I had a great time doing a route drive with her back in June. It was great to connect with her face to face and get excited about our new route.”
Kathleen tells us, “Jen is super reliable and really knowledgeable. She always goes above and beyond to make our jobs easier. She jumped right into Seattle without missing a beat!”
Kathleen (Seattle Crew & Volunteer Coordinator)
This spring, we were happy to welcome back Kathleen, a former Crew Coordinator who returned to the 3-Day after spending a few years at home with her little guys. Since she hasn’t been around for any of our past “Meet the Coaches” posts, we started her off with a few get-to-know-you questions: 
- Describe your job in 10 words or fewer – “Fun, puzzle-piecing and ever changing with lots of smiles!”
- We’re one week from the Seattle event. What’s a typical day like for you these days? – “Kind of crazy! There are many documents that need to be filled in and prepared, and lots of phone calls and emails to be returned. This is also the time of year when the most crew changes occur.”
- What are 3 things that we didn’t know about you? – “1) I have an identical twin sister.2) I have two awesome little boys. 3) I love spending time outdoors. I work outside as much as possible (and usually run inside when the phone rings to limit background noise)!”
And, here’s what the rest of the Seattle team had to say about working with Kathleen:
“I’d describe Kathleen as very determined! She jumped right back into things as the Crew & Volunteer Coordinator this year and has tackled a bunch of challenges with perseverance and a great sense of humor!” – Jen
“Kathleen is considerate, helpful, and positive. She is great about taking on challenges with grace and poise. She makes great connections with her crew team and you can see that they are her #1 priority. On the many conversations we’ve shared with each other, the one thing that rings clear is that Kathleen is a supportive sweetheart. We share many of the same feelings and interests, which is fun, comforting, and encouraging.” – Aubrey
Will you be on the Seattle 3-Day? Be sure to say hello to the coaches (they’re easy to spot around camp and the route in their light grey Staff shirts)!
From there, it was north to Walled Lake, where everyone was grateful for the beautiful waterfront views at the Grab & Go, the friendly residents who came out and cheered, and any hint of cool breeze coming off the water (have we mentioned it was really hot and humid on Friday?).
A little farther up the route, Pit 2’s crew, who was “demolishing breast cancer,” kept the walkers nourished and safe, and before long, the walkers arrived at the lunch stop where they were welcomed by the Walled Lake cheerleaders (varsity teams from two local high schools) and an updated menu. Yum! The second half of Day 1 took walkers through more of Novi’s residential areas before returning to Suburban Collection Showplace, which was also the site of the 3-Day camp.
On Friday night, we gathered in the dining tent for the camp show. We heard an uplifting speech from Cindy, a long-time 3-Day walker and survivor, and we were fascinated by the Komen grantee who talked about his company’s innovative no-compression mammography (which he termed, “the boob spa”). The Michigan 3-Day Youth Corps also joined us from the stage, sharing their inspiring reasons for participating.
Firefighters from the Novi Fire Department’s Station 3 came out early to cheer the walkers starting out, which is always a great motivation. After that it was onto a portion of Hines Drive into the lovely city of Plymouth. Walkers enjoyed a cool break at the Lunch Oasis, and from there, it was just a few blocks to the Kellogg Park cheering station, which was in full swing with its welcome signs, photo backdrops, and the famous pink fountain.
Down the road a bit, pit stop 3 had snacks, shade and imaginary gold medals for all of the “Olym-pink” 3-Day champions. After Plymouth, walkers headed back up into Northville, where the Buy Michigan festival was also happening in the quaint downtown area.
At pit stop 4, walkers refreshed before heading into the Survivor Stretch, the last section of the route before camp, where walkers are encouraged to reflect on the journey that breast cancer survivors have gone through and celebrate their strength and courage. Supporters from Komen Detroit and Komen Michigan had a big cheering station along this stretch, giving the walkers that last little burst of inspiration to fuel them back to camp.
The route moved through Livonia, including its historic downtown district, and from there, they ventured southeast into Dearborn. The residents of York Street pulled out all the stops again this year with their festive cheering station.
