Bev D. finds ways to be GRATEFUL, both in her life and for her Pink Bubble family

Next up in our “Word of the Year” series, this month Bev D. shares how she has been able to remain GRATEFUL, despite whatever challenges the past year has presented. She joined the 3-Day in 2011 to walk it once, and 15 3-Days later—she’s still here! The spirit of the pink bubble family keeps her coming back.

Tell me about your 3-Day experience.
I’ve participated in so many events since 2011, it’s hard to count…I think I am at 15!

What is your 2021 word of the year?
My word of the year is GRATEFUL.

Why is that your word of the year?
Even though 2020 was an awful year for the world, I am grateful because I was still able to spend time with my “pod” of friends and family. We hiked and went to the beach, and we were grateful we were able to do things like that. ALSO, my daughter had a baby girl! Baby Pearl Rhiannon was born on Thanksgiving Day. They spent the whole pregnancy quarantined and everyone is healthy and beautiful. She is my first grandchild and I am enormously grateful for her.

Why do you participate in the 3-Day?
My mom had breast cancer, which was the reason I walked the first year. I honestly thought it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience: “one and done” as they say (LOL) but like many of us, that is NEVER the case. The pink bubble became my family and forever friends and I love you all!

What does the 3-Day family mean to you?
The 3-Day family is the family I chose. They mean the world to me! I feel safe and loved and part of a special community that the outside world can never understand unless they join “the bubble.”

How does your word of the year connect to the 3-Day?
I am grateful not only for the things in my life, but for my 3-Day family, too. My 3-Day friends are in my bubble that I stay in and travel with. I have so many friends near and far that I call family who I know I can always depend on to be there! They have enriched my life ten-fold.

If you could share a message with the Pink Bubble, what would it be?
I am so grateful for my pink family that is close by, for always being here. I am grateful for the pink family from afar, for keeping us connected to each other in so many ways. We’ve had virtual walks, sent cards to each other, and have always been there to offer prayers when needed.

My symbol for my mom is a ladybug and there have been so many times when someone randomly will send me a text to tell me that they saw my “mom” in their office, in the park, on the sidewalk, in their house. And it always comes at a time when I just needed to hear it!

We want to know: What are you GRATEFUL for? Check back next month for the next blog post in our “Word of the Year” series.

The Four Words That Changed My Life

By Beth B.

Beth B. at the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure®

I never get tired of telling my story. Four words.

It all started on October 26, 2011 —10 days after my 30th high school reunion. I went for my annual exam. Ten minutes into the visit, my gynecologist said, “You have a lump.” Four words. Thirty minutes later, I was having a mammogram a month before my regularly scheduled one and an ultrasound. An hour later, the technician took me into a room and put me on the phone with my doctor, who said, “We found something suspicious.” Four words. They told me to find a surgeon and schedule a biopsy as soon as possible. Six days later, I had a biopsy, and on November 4, 2011, my world turned upside down. I was 48 years old when I heard “You have breast cancer.” Four words.

Part of my story involves how and where I received my diagnosis. I am a lobbyist for a financial services company, and the day after my biopsy, I traveled to Washington, D.C., on a business trip. As every cancer patient knows, the thing that you crave the most is normalcy. While I didn’t yet know that I was a cancer patient, I craved normalcy. The thought of sitting at home and waiting for the results was unbearable to me. I was in a meeting room with about 75 people when my cellphone started ringing, and I could see it was the surgeon’s office. I made it out to the lobby where the diagnosis was delivered. It was as if all the air had left the building. All I wanted to do was to get back to my room to call my Mom. I held it together until she picked up the phone, and I burst into tears. I felt like a child who falls off her bike and doesn’t cry until she gets home and runs straight into her mother’s arms.

I was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma, stage 2B. I had a lumpectomy a week before Thanksgiving in 2011. My margins were not clean, and I had node involvement. I chose to have a single mastectomy with immediate reconstruction, and I have never regretted that decision. The surgery was four days before Christmas. I had eight rounds of chemo. I lost all of my hair and started reconstruction during chemo. I finished treatment on May 2, 2012 and had reconstructive surgery later that summer with the final surgery that fall. I am currently taking Letrozole after five years of Tamoxifen. I still have neuropathy in my feet, but it is gone from my hands. Now my four words are “You are a survivor.”

I have met the most incredible people on this journey. I am proud to be a survivor, and I feel blessed every day. My fellow survivor thrivers are the bravest people I have ever met. They give me hope and courage every day. I hit the 9-year survivorship mark last November. Some days, it feels like yesterday, and other days, it feels like a lifetime ago. Some days, I scratch and claw my way through, but most days I just feel incredibly lucky.

We must continue to fund the research that will eventually eradicate this monster. Together we can, and will, lift the veil on this horrendous disease. Together, we are stronger than cancer. Life changes in an instant. I really have no other words. I will NEVER stop telling my story and I will NEVER stop fighting for a cure.

Here are my final four words to you — GO LIVE YOUR LIFE!

What the 3-Day Promise Means to Me

We walk because we must.

We are strong because the journey demands it.

Together in body and united in spirit,

We lay down our footsteps for this generation and the next.

This is our promise: A world without breast cancer.

What the 3-Day Promise Means to Me

The 3-Day promise means a world without breast cancer, but this promise goes even deeper for everyone who joins the 3-Day journey. It means walking to finding a cure, honoring loved ones, and standing together united against breast cancer. We commit to the 3-Day promise each time we fundraise to support research and care for breast cancer warriors. We act upon the promise we made with each mile we walk alongside our 3-Day family. It is a promise we make to ourselves and every member of the Pink Bubble. So, we asked members of the team: what does the 3-Day promise mean to you?

“Everything! The 3-Day promise is at the heart of everything we do here at Komen.

We walk because we must. We will never give up. We won’t stop. We will do whatever it takes.

We are strong because the journey demands it. We find strength in each other and ourselves.

Together in body and united in spirit. We are all one, bound forever by the same goal.

We lay down our footsteps for this generation and the next. We walk to help those who need it now and ensure our children and grandchildren have better lives.

This is our promise, a world without breast canver. This says it all.“ —Steph Myers

?The 3-Day promise means making a personal commitment to raise funds and awareness to ensure Susan G. Komen can continue to fund research to find the cures and provide care and treatment options for those battling breast cancer today. My personal 3-Day promise also encompasses the connection and commitment I feel to encourage and support the members of this community. We’re truly all in this together with shared goals and dreams for a future without breast cancer!” —Staci Roos

?When I first read and heard these words out loud during my first 3-Day event in 2018, I remember the overwhelming emotions I felt. I remember saying to myself ‘Oh my gosh, I am a survivor! I can help bring an end to breast cancer? I’m in!’” I will do my very best to raise money and will lay down endless footsteps to have a world without breast cancer. Walking is easy, fighting breast cancer is not!

Last year, in 2020 when all the 3-Day events were postponed because of the pandemic, I thought about the 3-Day promise and its meaning. Breast cancer doesn’t pause because of a pandemic and neither does the spirit of the 3-Day. I made a promise to lay down my footsteps and walk 20 miles on every weekend there was a scheduled 3-Day event. The 3-Day promise was my mantra before, during and after each of my walks!

As a survivor I know hearing ‘You have breast cancer’ are probably the scariest words I have ever heard. As a survivor I know the fight takes strength. As a survivor I have seen and felt the loss from this horrible disease. As a survivor, I will continue to lay down my footsteps for this generation and the next until we live in a world without breast cancer!” —Christine Jessen

“I have the good fortune of being part of the behind-the-scenes team who puts the ceremonies together. Listening to the 3-Day promise is my favorite part of both Opening and Closing Ceremonies. It’s a moment that unifies our entire community as they join together saying those inspiring words. It’s a powerful start to the moving experience they’re about to have. And then it cements their three days of participation when we come back together on Sunday and say it all over again. We’re all different people by the end of the event, so those words take on a different meaning.” —Molly Fast

?The 3-Day promise means we will never give up. We will fundraise and walk and crew as long as it takes to see breast cancer brought to an end.” —Tisho Jessop

We want to know what the 3-Day promise means to you! Share your story with us by using #The3Day on Instagram.