Meet the 2023 Denver 3-Day Crew Impact Award Winner, Amy N.!

Meet Amy N., our Denver Crew Impact Award Winner!

What was your inspiration to do your first 3-Day?

In 2006, a few months after completing my treatment for breast cancer, I was starting to look for a way to be a part of finding the cures. I saw a commercial for the 3-Day on TV, dragged my husband, Mark, to an info meeting, and we were both hooked! Now we can’t imagine not being on event.

What has brought you back to the 3-Day year after year?

We keep coming back because the fight continues, and we must be a part of it. But equally important, it’s the people who bring us back. The first-time walkers who drag themselves into the Closing Ceremony, the young kids cheering on their loved ones, the crew going above and beyond (mostly behind the scenes) to make this an experience the walkers will never forget, and the survivors giving their all (often while still undergoing treatment themselves), so that someday others won’t have to go through this fight.

What is your favorite aspect of crewing the 3-Day?

My favorite part is being able to give back to this community whose efforts helped make it possible for me to beat this monster. Crewing is my way to say thank you to the walkers! I love being able to interact with so many people from different walks of life who are all working toward one goal.

What is your best advice to anyone crewing the 3-Day?

Take time to soak it all in! The nature of the event is that there are a lot of “hurry up and wait” situations, but when it is go-time, the minutes and hours will fly by before you know it! At some point you will probably wonder why you got yourself into this, but then you’ll get a chance to make a difference for someone and it will all be worth it. Also, be prepared to start early in the morning.

What’s a fun fact about you?

My heart will always bleed green for Michigan State, but I live in the University of Michigan Wolverine territory, and I still proudly fly my Spartan flag! Also, I often say that I have one purpose on this earth: to make everyone around me feel tall! And I do it really, really well.

What are the most important lessons you’ve learned on the 3-Day?

I’ve learned that friendships made on the 3-Day will last a lifetime. People you never would have encountered in your normal life become so important to you. You may only see them once a year, but you will pick up right where you left off last time. Obviously, this event is about beating breast cancer, but it is also about people coming together to create a community. We don’t call it the pink bubble for nothing!

Julie J. is the 2023 Denver Milestone Award Winner!

Our 2023 Denver 3-Day Milestone Award Winner is Julie J.!

Affectionately known as Alaska Julie, this is her 32^nd 3-Day over the past 14 years, raising a grand total of $90,400.13. Her friend Melissa describes Julie as “one of the most giving people that I know and my ray of sunshine when I need it. If she sees someone in need, she jumps to their aide and makes whatever they are going through just a little bit better. I love that I can call her my friend.” Her friend Heather says that Julie is “the kindest, most selfless person I have ever had the pleasure of knowing,” and that “she is always there to support her fellow 3-Dayers with words of encouragement or much needed advice.” Discover all that makes Julie an embodiment of the 3-Day.

What was your inspiration to do your first 3-Day???

In 2006, I was living in Arizona and saw a commercial for the 3-Day. At the time, I didn’t know anyone who had gone through breast cancer, so I wanted to learn more. I was at a point in my life where I needed to do something to make a difference, so I signed up to walk with a friend who later opted out. Without a walking buddy, I went to a “Get Started” meeting and met someone who told me to call Liz, her team captain. I didn’t think I could be on a team because I spent my summers in Alaska and couldn’t train with my teammates year-round, but I soon found out how wrong I was. Liz kept me engaged while I was away and when I got back to Arizona after my summer in Alaska, I met the team and walked with them for the first time. It taught me that you can be part of a team no matter how far you may be from one another. You can even be part of more than one team! I am currently on BC Babes and Team Walking On, depending on the year and city we’re walking in.

What has brought you back to the 3-Day year after year?

My first year, I said I’d do one 3-Day and be done. Boy was I wrong! The joy of walking is meeting new people and hearing their stories. I once met a woman who was walking with her drainage tubes in, and at that moment I decided I was walking until there were cures. Also, there is the joy of the “Pink Bubble” and how we are changing lives. We know that we all have a huge community to reach out to for advice, strength, prayers, laughter, and that they will let you cry in their arms.

What is the secret to your 3-Day fundraising success?

Ask everyone. Ask them more than once. Think outside of the box. Living in Alaska, doing a group (team) fundraiser isn’t an option for me, so I do burlesque to earn money to go toward my fundraising goals. At the burlesque shows, they announce where my money goes and remind people to get a mammogram. Other than that, I once did a 5-mile Alaska run for women and said I would wear a full corset that I designed if I raised $100, add a wig for $150 and a tutu for $200. I raised $100 so I wore the corset for a 5-mile run, causing someone else to donate $200 because they couldn’t believe I did it! Do they not know me? Plus, I attend all the fundraising webinars that Coach Molly does and I learn something new each time I join.

What is your best advice to anyone walking the 3-Day?

Enjoy the journey! Talk to people to learn their why and tell them why you walk. Also, take a sweep van! You’ve already raised the money and awareness, and your goal is to walk out of the Opening Ceremony and into the Closing Ceremony. The rest is fluff. Stop and smell the roses! Participate in the evening activities, which are very fun and are a great time to meet and reconnect with walkers.

What’s a fun fact about you?

I do burlesque and I’ve swam with sea lions, even though I don’t swim. I’ve also done the Polar Bear Jump in Seward, Alaska during February, where the water temperature was warmer than the air temperature. I emcee races dressed in costumes and sing the National Anthem. In fact, I once sang the National Anthem dressed as a zombie and somebody donated $100 because they couldn’t believe I did it. Once again, do they not know me?!

What are the most important lessons you’ve learned on the 3-Day?

To listen to my body and do what is needed during the walk. I know we are not alone, that each step we take and each dollar we raise is making a difference, and that each person’s journey is different. I’ve learned that I will keep walking till there is a cure. I couldn’t do the walk without the support of all those who donate and send me mail, the coaches, my amazing teammates and all those in the Pink Bubble who radiate love and energy 365 days a year.

Julie’s friend Tanya says that her “knowledge of the 3-Day, commitment to finding the cures and her eagerness to be of assistance when/wherever she is needed is truly immeasurable. Julie’ s infectious smile and upbeat demeanor portrays the epitome of the 3-Day. Sprinkle on Julie…Sprinkle on.”

2023 3-Day New England Crew Impact Award Winners: Kris and Ken K.

Meet Kris and Ken K., “The TuTu Brothers”, our New England Crew Impact Award Winners!

For 15 years, brothers Kris and Ken K. have been participating in the 3-Day as crew members, raising a combined total of almost $15,000. This power duo shows up year after year to honor their mother and provide support to 3-Day walkers. Get to know their impact below!

What was your inspiration to do your first 3-Day?

Our inspiration to get involved with the 3-Day stems from our mom. Back in 2006, she was diagnosed with inflammatory breast cancer, a very rare and aggressive form of the disease. After multiple rounds of chemo, surgeries, and radiation, she was given a clean bill of health. In 2008, our family life was getting back to normal when we, as a family, knew it was time to pay it forward and get involved anyway possible with fighting this disease. Little did we know that getting involved would lead to the 3-Day, which has changed all of our lives for the better.

What has brought you back to the 3-Day year after year?

What keeps us coming back is the inability to stop coming year after year. To be given the chance to be surrounded by our heroes and extended family makes it hard to stay away. And, of course, the need to keep fighting for the cures.

What is your favorite aspect of crewing the 3-Day?

There are so many favorite aspects of crewing for us, including spending time with each other, the rest of our family, and certainly our 3-Day family.

What is your best advice to anyone crewing the 3-Day?

Be ready to work hard and have a good time doing it! The days may be long, but being able to support the walkers makes the day go by fast. The walkers? Yeah, they love the crew, and it shows. We love them right back.

What’s a fun fact about you?

Ken: I am an Architectural Project Manager and have worked on projects in/been to 48 states. Kris: I’m the Technical Director and ADA coordinator for a small theatre company in Burlington, NJ.

What are the most important lessons you’ve learned on the 3-Day?

The most important lesson for us is to be reminded that there are a lot of good people in the world doing good things. With so much negativity around us, it’s important to know that in your own part of the world, the best people are the ones you surround yourself with and do good things with.