My journey began back in December
when I sent out my usual email searching for Tit-Tastic teammates. At this point in my "Avon career," I have to remind myself that although it's an assumed annual event for me, it's not always an easy "yes" for others. There are many questions:
- How will I raise the $1800 minimum to Walk?
- Am I capable of Walking the 39.3 miles?
- Do I already have too much on my life plate to take on another activity?
- (And for past teammates) Was my last experience positive enough to repeat another year?
What came out of this year's teammate search was a group of 5 women, all from different pieces of my life: myself (no explanation needed), my mother (again, no explanation needed), my friend Kathleen whom I met through a mutual friend about 4 years ago, my friend Nicole whom I met through Tim's brother about 2 years ago, and my friend Kim whom I met as a fellow cheerleading coach 4 years ago. This was a great group of women - full of energy, dedication and huge hearts. I just knew we were going to have a fun time getting to know one another, working together toward a common goal and then experiencing a weekend-long journey arm-in-arm.
Due to the nature of our busy schedules we were only able to meet as a team a few times, but we used those meetings to their full extent. First and foremost, these women in my life had to get to know one another and form a bond that would get us through a challenging feat in only a few months time. We spent meetings talking about ourselves and why we chose to participate in the Walk, what we were each planning for our individual fundraising efforts, how we should go about creating the most successful group fundraiser, our concerns and setbacks for training our bodies and toward the end, what Walk Weekend would be like. I'm a pretty straight-up Team Captain. I want each team member to know exactly what they're getting themselves into - a whole lotta awesomeness!! I don't play down the intensity of fundraising or training or the Walk Weekend itself, but I think it's more than necessary to play UP the amazing feeling each team member gets by partaking in the experience.
When it came to individual fundraising efforts 
I was
so proud of each teammate for thinking up different ways to reach their
minimum of $1800. Nicole, being quite the talented baker, spent several
weeks bringing cupcakes and brownies and cookies to her work place. Evidently when that stopped she had colleagues begging for more!
Kathleen, being a social butterfly, set up an NCAA Men's Basketball March Madness bracket and
visited several bars one evening to sign up guys and gals in a
winner-take-half pool. No shame to her game, Kathleen signed up some people who had no interest in basketball whatsoever! Kim, a cheerleading coach, worked with her high schoolers to sell pieces of pink flair all over Silver Spring, Maryland. Such a great idea to teach kids early-on that making a difference is important! My mom, the witty linguist, wrote attention-grabbing emails and kept a fine account of the journey on her blog. Each time someone donated and gave her the name of a survivor, she kept it with her and was empowered to keep going!
As for my own efforts, I must say
that I have the best supporters out there! Within three weeks of my
first email, my incredible donors had already given $2000 (surpassing
the minimum goal). In true Sara fashion, I immediately raised my
goal to $5000, which I know sounds like a huge jump, but hey, go big
or go home! I am so grateful to have a consistent donor base that stems
from what I can tell is three different groups of people: those who
have been somehow affected by breast cancer, those who support me in all
my endeavors no matter what and those who were connected to my journey
through others (friends of my parents). The best part of fundraising for
this cause is touching the lives of so many... giving my friends and
family a way to make a difference, big or small... feeling like there is
hope for the future. When someone donates, their name is forever engrained in my heart; when someone shares the memory of a loved one who battled breast cancer, their name is forever engrained in my heart. Every year I am sadly amazed by the shear number of people affected by this awful disease, but am happy to be a soldier in the fight against it.
My biggest concern this year was completing the 39.3 miles. While I had it in my mind to follow the strict training schedule put forth by Avon to prepare me for Walk Weekend, I had a few injury/illness stints (like a hospital visit for chest
pains, serious lower back pain, and general fatigue from working long
hours) that set me back. I know, I know... no excuse not to train my hardest... but that's the truth. There were moments here and there in the weeks leading up when I thought, how can I be a solid team captain without the confidence that I'll finish the trek? How can I convince my teammates that training is important when I'm not actively doing it myself? I am happy to say that each teammate took it upon herself to train in her own way whether it be on the treadmill at home, running outside or going to the gym for weights. And while I may not have trained my body to the fullest, my mind and heart have been trained for years. There is no option NOT to finish.
I Walk for the women and men in my life who live every day hoping
they will never hear the words, "You have breast cancer" or "Your
breast cancer has re-surfaced." I Walk for the future... for the children I will bear, for the grandchildren they will bear. I Walk for myself... to continue a life of kindness, compassion, love and hope!
One of the things I most look forward to each year is designing t-shirts! Every Walker is given an Avon Walk shirt upon registration (which our team chooses to wear on the Sunday of Walk Weekend) and then as a team we custom-make shirts to wear on the Saturday of Walk Weekend. Past slogans for Team Tit-Tastic include: "Save a Life" (DC, 2009); "
Take a Bite out of Breast Cancer" (NYC, 2010); "
Blowin' Through Breast Cancer" (Chicago, 2011). When thinking about this year, we considered a few things: we're walking in D.C., it's an election year and votes count, we're in this to fundraise, keep it short and sweet. So after many options were put on the table, we landed on: IN BOOBS WE TRUST! *
These shirts ended up being a big hit and several supporters want to put in an order! If you're interested in purchasing one for $25, send me an email.
For our group fundraiser we hosted an evening at The Greene Turtle of Arundel Mills (a local sports bar). Team Tit-Tastic has been holding fundraisers at this bar (with the help of manager Danny Del Tufo) for 4 years now and it hasn't let us down yet! We invited everyone we knew in the area and ended up with a pretty solid crowd. Guests were invited to participate in many different aspects of the evening: $10 wristbands got you happy hour specials all night long (food & drink); raffle items like videography, personal training, wedding planning, bags and clothes were up for grabs; pink accessories like necklaces, pins, koozies, backpacks and more were available for $1-$10; and of course the good 'ol Boob Buckets were sitting right at the front for anyone and everyone to drop in some extra donations to the cause. Our dear teammate Kim, who had decided days earlier that due to health concerns she wouldn't be able to complete the journey, came out to support us and brought an incredible donation from her cheerleaders' efforts - $800! That incredible amount plus our efforts from the evening gave us a grand total of $
2020 for group fundraising!!
Before we knew it, Walk Weekend had arrived! First stop, as always, was Event Eve on Friday night - this year taking place at the J.W. Marriott in D.C. I can't lie - I LOVE Event Eve - it really gets my blood flowing. I enjoy meeting other teams, the energy in the large ballroom is on high and it kicks off the amazing weekend to come. We had several things to take care of at Event Eve this year. We each had last-minute donations to turn in and we each received our top fundraiser incentives, we wanted to take a picture with the big banner and accessories, we visited the booths of flair (I spent $20 on buttons, haha) and of course, we signed up for 2013! *
The next Walk will take place May 4-5, 2013. If you're interested, shoot me an email and I'll remember to contact you when we're getting the team together.
At
4:00 a.m. on Saturday morning, the alarms went off and we head back
into D.C. for Opening Ceremonies. This year they were at the Washington
Monument which was not only ideal for photos, but an incredibly vast
space of beauty to gather before a long journey. We filled up our
Camelbacks with water, stretched out with a fitness instructor on the main stage and
listened to the stories of survivors and families. One
12-year old girl talked about her grandmother battling breast cancer
for years and how that taught her the value of never giving up; one firefighter shared his story of losing three sisters to breast cancer in
the span of only two years, which seems unfathomable and cut straight to our hearts; we raised our hands and stood together as a group
of thousands with one cause. I already had tears running down my cheeks. There's something special about Opening Ceremonies. It's one of only three times all weekend when ALL Walkers and Crew are together (the other two being the Wellness Village on Saturday night and Closing Ceremonies on Sunday afternoon). Over 3,000 people come together because we share the story of breast cancer and we each want to play a part in writing the ending. We are one team. We have one desire. We are In It To End It.
At 7:00 a.m. the Walk began. We felt strong. We were ready. We were on an emotional adrenaline rush. And there were 2300+ other people of which to vibe off! The first several miles came quickly as we were checking out the beautiful scenery and meeting other teams, both rookie and alumni. As always, I loved checking out the clever shirts, fun pieces of flair and beautiful sentiments that Walkers wore on the journey. And let me tell you - I am never disappointed at the number of slang terms I see for "breasts." We are an imaginative group to say the least.
Here are a few photos from Saturday:
There are some very special people placed along the route that I must thank for their service.
The Crew: these men and women devote their weekend to making sure every single Walker is taken care of, whether it be with water and snacks at rest stops, directions to the next mile marker, medical attention or morale boosts.
The Crossing Guards: sometimes 5+ year alumni themselves, they are at every major intersection directing traffic to keep us safe. They are sure to remind us about stretching and hydrating and their smiles are exactly what we need to start up again after a long red light. And who doesn't love a motorcycle covered in pink?
The Cheering Stations: led by families or sororities or stores in the vicinity, cheering stations are a burst of energy in between rest stops that usually provide sugar or chocolate and lots of high fives!
The Youth Crew: This group of 20 eager and friendly children (ages 9-12) are all along the route cheering & chanting, massaging, handing out snacks & bandaids & high fives and just generally being rays of sunshine! I learned that they must apply to be on the Youth Crew and they are chosen from at least 100 applicants.
I'm unsure of the time, but when we hit the lunch stop we were greeted by my dad and Nicole's boyfriend. We were definitely hungry and the rest after 10 miles of walking was much-needed. Aside from that, it's important at any rest stop to do a few things: fill up your Camelback with water or Gatorade (this helps with dehydration), re-apply Glide or Vaseline to your feet (this helps with friction and blisters), stretch (this helps with pulled muscles and tension), check your phone for encouraging texts & emails (this helps with morale)!
We continued to power forward toward the half-marathon mark! This moment on the Walk is both a YAY and a GRR. On the one hand, we're half way done today! On the other hand, we're only half way done today. My mom felt she was done for the day and I was SO proud of her for completing the 13.1 miles. Last year she made it 11.7, so this was an improvement! If we can up her mileage every year, she'll be rockin' past all the young folk in no time! Nicole, Kathleen and I took on miles 14-18 with a fast pace and high spirits! We couldn't believe how easy it felt... even with the rain... and hilly neighborhoods. Nothing could stop us!
And then we hit the wall. Dun dun dun. It's those last 6 miles on Saturday that really get to you. No matter what pace, no matter your state of morale, they just seem like longer miles than before. Luckily we were behind a team whose supporters stopped on the side of the road around mile 18 to deliver popsicles. Us too, please! And a little further up around mile 19.5, a family had set up a lemonade stand on their lawn. Help ourselves? Don't mind if we do! And even further up around mile 21, a group of supporters was handing out candy and (no shame in my game) I noticed a pizza box in their trunk. You look hungry - want a slice? Me me me! And then, as there were no more supporters in sight for a while and we were in a fancy-pants neighborhood, we played "Wow, that's a nice house, I'm going to live there when I grow up." At mile 24 the route left the main roads and went onto paths in Rock Creek park. I knew we were close to the Wellness Village as I recognized the area from the 2009 Walk. Hanging on by a thread, we kindly smiled at every Crew member who told us "you're almost there."
Bringing tears to our eyes, we saw the Wellness Village and the big banner letting us know we'd completed 26.2 miles - a full marathon! Kathleen's dad and Nicole's boyfriend were there waiting for us with hugs and smiles! (My dad had to high tail it home after lunch to relieve the puppies.) And in true Sara fashion, as soon as we crossed under the banner I got a burst of energy and decided to dance wildly with some of the Crew members. I was just so happy! I felt great! All the worry I had in the previous months about my physical condition and questioning how far I could go didn't matter because I was A-OK! I was also in high spirits because after my mom was shuttled to the Wellness Village (at the 13.1 marker), she put up our tents (which is my least favorite thing to do). As it was already past 6:00 p.m. and dinner would close at 8:00 p.m., our first stop was to the food tent. Just as I remembered - spaghetti with meatballs, salad, bread and a cupcake. Yummmm! While everyone was eating the Youth Crew put on a skit and a few Walkers played Avon Jeopardy. We then made our way to the showers (which are in huge 18-wheelers and feel like locker rooms at a pool). I didn't even mind the long line because we got the chance to chat with other Walkers about their experiences so far and I met another mother-daughter team with similar characteristics to my mom and me.
The only thing left for me to do before bed was visit the Medical Tent. Oh, did I mention I got a blister? My first one in 4 years of Avon! It was on my big left toe and the lovely nurse told me it was in good enough shape to just leave alone. I was instructed to come back in the morning and they would do one of two things - pop it or put mole skin around it. Fine by me - it didn't hurt anyway. By 9:30 p.m. the Wellness Village is so very quiet. People are exhausted from the long day of walking and are eager to get a good night's sleep before doing another 13.1 miles on Sunday. It's at this time that I like to stand outside my tent and just survey the incredible site that is the Wellness/Tenting Village. Everyone here has worked so hard, putting their heart and soul into the last almost-30 hours. They are feeling accomplishment. Happiness. Strength. Faith. Unity. Hope. It's at this time that I'm so grateful to have this opportunity. To even be in the presence of these philanthropists is an honor. We are each just one person, but together we form a community. Goodnight!
Rise and shine was 5:45 a.m. so I could get to the Medical Tent before the crowd really started. I was one of the first in line and as I expected, the nurse put mole skin around my blister and sent me on my way. The route would open at 7:30 a.m. so we needed to get dressed, pack up our tents, put our luggage back on the trucks, eat breakfast, fill up our Camelbacks, Glide-up and get going! *
You may wonder about the large ribbons hanging from the necks of Kathleen and myself. The statistic is - every 3 minutes, someone in the U.S. is diagnosed with breast cancer. Throughout Walk Weekend, members of the Crew hand out one of those ribbons every 3 minutes. This is to show that at any moment, any one of us can be affected by this awful disease. It just so happens that I've received a ribbon 3 out of the 4 Walks I've completed. On the one hand it is an honor to wear a ribbon for those affected. On the other hand, it really gets to me that out of the thousands who Walk each year, I've been "told" 3 times that I'm the one affected.
At around mile 6 (or 32 for those counting the entire journey), Kathleen and Nicole felt they needed to stop. A combination of blisters and aches & pains were just too much to continue, so they were shuttled via sweep van to the lunch stop. My mom and I carried on! At mile 8 we were greeted by my dad, dazzling in bright yellow and wearing three pink breast cancer pins. True to form, he walked the rest of the Walk with us (a total of 5 miles) because he's a rock star and totally supports his ladies! We passed embassies and the Naval Observatory... American University and the National Cathedral. We even passed the mosque where my parents received some consultation before marriage 37 years ago.
Arriving at lunch we found Kathleen and Nicole and ate a quick bite before getting right back on the path with only 3 miles left in the journey! But not before we were greeted by more team supporters who walked with us the rest of the way. Those last few miles on Sunday are just the best. You feel re-energized, you can't help but smile, you know the journey is coming to an end, you're ready to walk into Closing Ceremonies with your head held high and celebrate a job well done with thousands of other Walkers and Crew.
At 2:00 p.m., Team Tit-Tastic crossed the finish line and we had done it - Walked 39.3 miles in the fight against breast cancer!
There was about an hour to kill before the Closing Ceremonies, so we grabbed our completion shirts, took photos under the We Did It sign, took our socks and shoes off, drank the last bit of water in our Camelbacks and positioned ourselves with the other Walkers to walk into the main staging area. And because I have the best timing ever, I suggested we walk over to the other Walkers just as the Food & Friends people were looking for a team to lead all the Walkers in with the banner. Pick us, pick us!
As emotional as ever, Team Tit-Tastic led the 2300+ Walkers for the 2012 D.C. Avon Walk for Breast Cancer into Closing Ceremonies. After the regular Walkers came the Survivors (269 of them). So many cheers. So many tears (of happiness). The Avon Walk Director announced a total of
$4.25 million in grants to ten local organizations, and the Executive Directors of those ten organizations were present to directly receive their checks. It felt really really good.
The whole weekend is a physical challenge, an emotional roller-coaster
and a mental high five! You cross that line arm-in-arm with the team you came with and you just know your life has changed. I am all smiles. I knew we could do it this year and I know we'll do it again.
Nicole & Kathleen - I am so proud of you for completing your first Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. I am glad you registered for next year and know it will be an even better experience the second time around. Mom - I am so proud of you for completing your second Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. You are getting stronger and more confident each year and I am lucky to have you as a role model.
I am proud to say that with the support of donors all over the world (literally), I raised $5045 this year. I'd like to take this time to thank each and every one of them:
Marj & Jerry Sparer, Lauren Summers, Rebecca
& Dick King, Tim Kimmel, Hussein Amin, Mollie Gansky, Anna DeLuca,
Anita Russell, Lou King & Harriet Langlois, Estelle Kluft, Ahmed
Nassar, Becky Christie, William Bracken, Rachel Siegal & Sam
Andorsky, Ashley & Alan Pressman, Nazem & Kathleen Abdalla,
Alexis Liscandrella, Allan & Mary Karen Newstadt, Melissa Mooney,
Amy Costanzo, David & Rita Sandler, Linda & Robert August, John
& Kathryn Wenzel, Hosni & Lucy Berzi, Jackie Moriarty, Juliya
& Leon Sheynman, Tal & Scott Bloom, Eve Finstein, Alan
Roecklein, Avi Ornovitz, Jackie Lyon, Marianne Templeton, Hugh Mealy,
Alan Tupek, Dawn Ratcliffe & Jeff Boghosian, Patricia Lefevre, Frank
& Pat Duchesne, Melinda Greenberg, Donald Roberts, Maayan &
Yitzchak Jaffe, Erica & David Bloom, Michele & Stu Johnson, Rich
& Terri Abrams, Cecil Mallon, Michael & Christine Wenzel, Mary
Hall, Dayna & Gil Leder, Joe & Mary Cowden, Olivia Sparer, Edith
Johnson, Ellen Fox, Franklin & Lorraine Davis, Adel Kafrawy, Gayle
McClelland, Peter Adams, Erin Patterson, Howard & Judith Rudnick,
Angella Rogers, Michael & Erin Czan, Rebecca & Jon Grant, Sarah Mandel,
Cindy Goldstein, Pattie Tipton, Lori Northcraft, Karen & Michael
Patterson, Greene Turtle of Arundel Mills, Corrie Roberts, Chelsea Bowers, Steffi Wallis, Christie Puckett, Tiffany Miles, CustomInk.com, Katie Abner, Jennifer Robinson, Amanda Wardlaw, Christopher Walker, Georgia Dalikas, Marisa Danto, Alanna Thomas, Maggie Amin, Nicole Barton, Winnie Kwok, Kelly Wilmoth, Vicki Masliah.
I am also proud to say that as a 4-woman team, we raised a total of: $13,373 this year!!!
Every one of us received the Powerful Fundraiser hat for reaching $2200. I received the Unstoppable t-shirt for reaching $3600. And for the first time in my Avon career, I received the Supreme duffel bag for reaching $5000.
Even more exciting, my personal 4-year total now exceeds $15,000!
Can't wait for 2013!
Full photo recap of the 2012 Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, visit my Facebook album>>
Full blog recap of the 2011 Avon Walk in Chicago>>
Full blog recap of the 2010 Avon Walk in NYC>>
