There’s a one-mile stretch of the Susan G. Komen San Diego 3-Day® that’s especially bittersweet for Heather B.—Memorial Mile.
Memorial Mile is a powerful part of every 3-Day route where walkers pass signs honoring those who have died from breast cancer. Each sign features a person’s name and a photo, placed there by loved ones who are walking in their memory. It’s both beautiful and emotional, reminding walkers exactly why they’re participating.
For Heather, that mile carries a deeply personal meaning.
“That last mile on day two is the hardest mile for me,” Heather said. “It is difficult turning the corner and seeing Kelly’s picture there on Memorial Mile.”
Road to the 3-Day
In 2014, Heather set a personal goal to participate in 14 walking events as a way to prioritize her well-being.
Around the same time, her husband’s cousins, Kelly and her sister Tracy, were thinking about walking the 3-Day in Arizona. Although they didn’t end up walking that year, they joined Heather at another breast cancer event in Central Oregon.
Shortly before the event, Kelly had to undergo a biopsy after her doctor suspected breast cancer.
“I encouraged them both to come to the event still, and they did,” Heather said.
During the walk, Kelly connected with other participants and members of the breast cancer community. Just a few days later, she was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer.
After Kelly’s diagnosis, Heather set a new goal: she wanted to walk in the 2015 Seattle 3-Day the following year, in her honor. Even though Kelly couldn’t be there physically, she supported Heather every step of the way.
“Throughout the walk, she and I were exchanging text messages, and she was giving me words of encouragement,” Heather recalled.
Kelly responded well to treatment and then went into remission.
“I decided to come back to the 3-Day in 2021 and walk in San Diego when her cancer had come back and it wasn’t responding to treatment,” Heather explained. “She passed in August 2022.”
That November, Heather walked for the first time in memory of Kelly at the San Diego 3-Day. She has continued to walk in her memory and placed a sign for Kelly in the Memorial Mile in 2023 and 2025. She will do so again this year.
“It was really hard that first year when I saw her smile on the Memorial Mile sign,” Heather said. “But the support from the Pink Bubble is absolutely amazing.”
That experience deepened Heather’s sense of connection to everyone honored along that mile.
“These are people’s loved ones that others are walking for,” Heather said. “I make it a point when I’m walking into camp at night to say every person’s name on every sign and recognize every person that is there.”
Walking for Many
This year, Heather will walk her sixth 3-Day in San Diego as “Team Kelly.” Over the years, her brother has joined, and she has walked alongside other friends she met at the 3-Day.
With every event, her passion for the Pink Bubble continues to grow.
So does the list of people she walks for.
“I carry a running list of names with me on all the 3-Days, whether they are survivors or they have passed away,” Heather said. “I want to honor every one of them.”
To learn more about the 3-Day, visit the3day.org.
