Dear friends and family,

Thank you for supporting me in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer — New York. Not only did your contribution help me beat my own personal goal, but it really does make a difference; it will go toward funding access to care and finding a cure for Breast Cancer. Just two weeks ago my friend Kate and I walked across the finish line next to the USS Intrepid with 4,000 other people who walked for such a great cause. Walkers consisted of mothers, daughters, fathers, brothers, friends, family and most importantly many survivors that have all known someone who has been struck by this disease. With your help, we were able to collectively raise more than $9.5 million dollars and raise awareness about this disease worldwide.

While I spent 5 months training for the walk, I also spent 5 months learning more about this disease and how it affects people in our country. The first statistic I learned about breast cancer during my training was that every three minutes another woman in the United States is diagnosed with breast cancer. This fact seemed to stick with me throughout both my training and the walk. What really struck me was that from the time I began walking and the minute I crossed the finish line, over 600 women were diagnosed with breast cancer. It was this statistic along with others that helped keep me and so many others going through our training. I’d gladly walk any distance to help these women and bring an end to breast cancer.

The walk itself was amazing. We had great weather and I was able to see New York City in a new light. All the people I walked with were high-spirited and such a great group of people who kept motivating others to keep going strong. There were also groups of wonderfully spirited people at cheering stations along the way to keep our spirits high along with pit-stops and breaks to keep us fully energized, rested and hydrated. After Saturday’s portion of the walk, we ended on Randall’s Island for showers, a great dinner and some Yoga before camping out to tackle day 2. While waking up on Sunday was a bit rough and took plenty of energy, it didn’t take long for everyone to acknowledge that blisters, cramped muscles and sore feet are nothing compared to that which people with breast cancer have to deal with on a daily basis.

While I could write a short story about my experiences through the walk; I experienced something that no amount of words could do it any justice. I heard inspiring stories from survivors and their friends and families. I saw men and women push themselves past their physical abilities.

Thank you again for your support. You rock!

If you’d like to see some pictures taken during the walk, you can check them out here on Facebook.