As you know, the month of October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and I along with 4,000 plus other walkers participated in the Avon Walk earlier this month.  This year, the Walkers raised $9.5 million vs. $11.5 million last year.  Not bad in this economy huh?   I will also tell you that of the 4,000 walkers, 448 of us are survivors!  I wanted to send this recap to you sooner, but I needed a little more time to recover from the walk than I thought….  Even though it’s been a couple of weeks since the walk, it is still fresh in my mind as if it were yesterday.  Let me share with you my walk experience and I hope you’ll feel as if you were there.

You may be surprised to hear that I was cracked up about doing this walk as it grew closer and closer on my calendar.  I was busy to begin with and then got even busier when school started in September.  Everyone who knows me well, knows that I am very organized and track my daily “to do” list.  Well, when it came to preparing for the walk, I just felt overwhelmed – I mean, how was I going to walk 40 miles over the course of a weekend when I had properties to show (yes, the market is picking up) along with school and kids’ football schedules to keep up with?  There was just no way, I was going to do the walk.  I was ready to break the news to my “Gal Pal/BFF” Julie (who is just as busy) that this was going to be the last time I would walk – it was just too much!  Little did I know she was thinking the same thing…

Fast forward to Saturday morning of the walk:

Thanks to Stuart who drove us into the city for a 5:30 a.m. arrival; we made it on time, and were greeted by the hustle and bustle of the many walkers and crew who were loading luggage, grabbing breakfast, or looking sleepy because it was still black outside.  The opening ceremony began at 6am with music to pump us up; some early morning stretches followed by greetings from the Avon Walk Director of NY who is also a 4 year breast cancer survivor.  As I looked around during the opening ceremony, I saw women and men from all walks of life.  Everyone had their own reason for walking whether it was for them; a loved one or a friend; we were all going to walk the next two days together as one.  As the sun started to rise on pier 84 and with Julie and our other team members by my side, we all started off on our journey together to remember and honor those we walked for.  At that moment, I knew that I would continue to participate in this walk every year no matter how busy I am.  As a 2 year survivor, I know that I am blessed and thankful to be strong, healthy and cancer free!

Overall, the weekend was cloudy with a slight drizzle on Saturday.  After a full day of walking (26 plus) miles, Julie and I made a “B” line for the message booths followed by a nice hot shower.  Yes, the shower was nice and hot and it felt sooo good!!  We slept in tents on Saturday night only to wake up on Sunday to very frigid temps where you could see your breath.  It was so cold that we had to get dressed while still in our sleeping bags!  At least it wasn’t pouring rain like last year!  Finally, after a good breakfast consisting of a bowl of oatmeal and a cup of coffee, off we went to polish off the last 13.1 miles.

The closer we got to the finish, the harder it got… more things hurt and you felt like you were never going to get to the end.  As we approached the end of the walk, our team of 7 locked arms and crossed the finish line together; each of us with tearful eyes as the memories of those we’ve lost and those we celebrate crossed the finish line with us physically and mentally.

The closing ceremony was something to remember.  This year a young woman who was 28 told us her story about being diagnosed with breast cancer when she was just 26 years old.  Her life was turned upside down from the point of diagnosis, to surgery and losing her hair from chemotherapy.  She had her whole life ahead of her before this dreadful disease came crashing down.  I’m happy to say that the young woman is now a 2 year survivor and she looks like a real fighter!  As I listened to her speech about her experience, it brought tears to my eyes because I couldn’t help but to remember the day when I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer and all the surgeries and treatments that followed.

So, you see my friends, I will continue to walk for this cause that is now very near and dear to me.  I will walk because I know that every 3 minutes, someone hears the words “you have breast cancer”.  I will walk until the day the walk has been canceled because the cure for this dreadful disease has been found.  So, please support me again next year – yes, I’ve already registered for 2010.   God willing, I will be busy once again, but not too busy to walk!

Thank you all for all of your support, I couldn’t have done this walk without you.  As we head into the holiday season, I wish you good health, peace and happiness.  Until then…