First-timers on the Boston 3-Day

Everyone give a warm welcome to Cyndi, Sandy and Denise!

Cyndi Whitehead, Sandy Haynes, and Denise Vaudrin during lunch on the Boston 3-Day.

When Cyndi Whitehouse of Springfield, Massachusetts, was diagnosed with breast cancer 30 years ago, she probably could not foresee July 26, 2013 as her first day on a Susan G. Komen 3-Day^® Series with sister Sandy Haynes and good friend Denise Vaudrin! Here they are, and being with them even for a few minutes at lunch gave me the sense of their great love for each other and of life. Cyndi asked her sister and friend to walk with her, and they gladly said, “Yes!”

How did they remember their first day? “Ouch!” They recommend a lot of training to prepare walkers for the long days. They also had some great ideas for fundraising, as they had a local vineyard hold a wine tasting, complete with a relabeled wine “Poppy’s Girls” (named after the sisters’ father). It sounded like a great evening with everyone happy and interested in breast cancer research and finding a cure.

"Poppies" is a relabeled wine served for fundraising for the Boston 3-Day®

“Poppy’s Girls” is a relabeled wine served for fundraising for the Boston 3-Day®

It’s wonderful to hear that Cyndi has been doing well for 30 years! Welcome to your first Komen 3-Day, Cyndi, Sandy, and Denise!

Encouraged By Dear Friends

Kevin Barry and Jenny D’Amato rest during lunch.

Kevin Barry was watching TV in his Phoenix home when a story about the Susan G. Komen 3-Day^® came on TV. Any other year, this may not have caused him to think, but in 2002, his sweet wife had passed away after a nine and a half year battle with breast cancer, and he felt moved to do something. She was diagnosed only six weeks after his daughter was born in 1988, and her passing came just before their daughter’s 8th grade graduation. He walked his first Komen 3-Day in Arizona. The Boston 3-Day this weekend is his 17th walk.

Kevin Berry's pink puffs ride atop his pink running shoes.

Kevin Barry’s pink puffs ride atop his pink running shoes.

Why the Boston 3-Day? Kevin and Jenny D’Amato from Philadelphia struck up a friendship on a previous 3-Day^® (as so many walkers do!), and they keep in touch. It was Jenny who encouraged Kevin to fly to Boston and to participate in the cause that is so dear to the Bostonians. Even though Jenny is from Philadelphia, she is connected to friends in the area and is motivated by a close friend from college who is currently battling breast cancer.

The world of the 3-Day knits together people from all over, a touching reminder to me that we are all connected in the fight to find a cure for breast cancer.

The Silent Survivor

As I post today’s inspirational 3-Day story, our amazing 2013 Boston 3-Day Crew are busy decorating sweep vans, marking routes and making preparations to support the 3-Day walkers who will begin their 3-Day journey tomorrow. If you would like to cheer on our walkers this weekend, check out our Spectator Information for locations and times when walkers will be passing by.

Debbi Shaffer is walking in her fourth 3-Day in Washington DC, and has also cheered friends as a “walker-stalker” in San Diego. Debbi proudly wears her 3-Day survivor Victory t-shirt now, but it took her years to share her very personal experience with breast cancer. We are thankful that she chose to share it with us on The 3-Day Blog.

Eighteen years ago, Debbi got the news that changed her life. “I can hardly believe it has been 18 years since my boyfriend found a lump in my left breast. When I went to my doctor and was told I had breast cancer, at the time all I could think was, ‘28 year olds are not supposed to have breast cancer’. I was silent about my own experience for many years.” Continue reading →