This past weekend I participated in the Dallas/Ft Worth 3day. For those of you who have no idea what that is, their site can be found here, but I will briefly sum it up.
The 3day organization is seperate but under the branches of the Susan G Komen Foundation, whose purpose is to essentially stop breast cancer. They focus on education, providing treatment for those unable to do so themselves, and of course, funding research. You've probably heard of the Race for the Cure. The 3 mile charity run/walk done in just about every city in the country that benefits the Komen foundation.
The event itself is a 60 mile, 3 day walk that takes place in roughly a dozen cities a year. Despite having, fewer participants, and fewer locations than the Race for the Cure, the 3day raises a great deal more money (one of the requirements of participation is $2200 in fundraising). The DFW event alone raised roughly $6.1 million between the ~2400 participants.
So, now that you know what it is...I want you to know why I did it. I have a very high occurance of breast cancer in my family. My mother is a 5 year survivor (and has also participated in 5 3day events now), her sister is a 4.5 year survivor. Their grandmother was also a survivor and passed of old age at 99. My 23 year old cousin is already showing signs of being very high risk.
Breast cancer (as well as ovarian and prostate) are very hereditary. If you have any occurances in your family, please take a few moments and read up on warnings and self examinations. Catching cancer early increases the chances of sucessful treatment and survival greatly. Self examination only takes a couple minutes of your time and can be done weekly.
This message doesn't apply only to the aging, or the women for that matter. Cases of breast cancer in men, while rare, are rising. A gentleman on my team and his brother are both survivors of a very rare type of breast cancer. We also had a young lady this weekend who particpated as a survivor at the age of 28. Unfortunately, this affects everyone.
I'm getting off my little soapbox now, but I really wanted to share this. I'm not asking you to donate any money, or volunteer your time in service...just a couple clicks and reading some information that may help keep you around here a little longer.
Thanks.
