April Review

It has been an incredibly busy April for me. I was on vacation at the start of April, madly trying to catch up when I returned and then organizing several fundraisers.

It was a big fundraising month. We started off the month with our Texas Hold 'Em Poker Tournament. We ended up with 24 players and the net proceeds totaled $1,100. I will be splitting the net proceeds with my sister. And you can still buy our Saving Sisters handmade 100% soy wax candles until the end of the month. It looks like the candles will bring in another $150-$200 in net proceeds for me. Wow that brings my fundraising total to almost $1,500. While these fundraisers were successful, my Paws for a Cause afternoon of games had to be postponed due to lack of sign ups. Bummer, the good news is that several people expressed interest but had scheduling conflicts. As April closes, I'm looking ahead and anticipating that the summer will be huge for Paws for a Cause events. The memory stones will be back for the Memorial Day, 4th of July and Labor Day weekend boarders. The afternoon of games will be rescheduled for this summer and I anticipate an awesome event with great prizes and participation. And I'm toying with the idea of a dog wash. Stay tuned for more details on all of the Paws for a Cause events.

Unfortunately, my training suffered during April. While I always walk each week because of dog walks, these walks are shorter and slower than what I need to be doing to be fully prepared for the 60 miles over the 3 days come October. So in May I will be focusing on starting and committing to a training schedule that includes longer and faster walks sans the dogs a couple of times each week.

And finally, we had an awesome opportunity to raise awareness for the cause and event when the Shenandoah Valley Journal ran an article about my sister and I and our poker tournament.

Candles, Necklaces, Bracelets and Paws - Oh My!

When I participated in the walk back in 2002, my friends and family generously supported me by pulling out their checkbooks and writing checks to Susan G. Komen. I raised over $2,000 this way. I have already received close to $200 in traditional donations this year and I hope this continues to grow. And while traditional donations will always be a part of my fundraising plan, I wanted to find other creative ways to raise money. So I'm excited to tell you more about some unique ways to support me.

Saving Sisters Candles

These 100% soy wax candles are handmade in the Shenandoah Valley by Forgotten Creek Candles. The scents available are:

Linen Fresh

Very Vanilla

Cinnamon Stick

Hot Baked Apple Pie

Fresh Peach

Spring Lilac

The candles cost $14 in Texas (it's a long journey) and $12 in Virginia. We will be taking orders through April. Payment is due when you make your order. The candles will be delivered to you at the end of May. The net proceeds will be donated to the cause. I hope you love these candles as much as I do. Contact either me or Christa (my sister) to order.

Necklace and Bracelet

About a minute after I officially signed up for the walk, I decided to contact Kim to see if she was up for designing a necklace and bracelet to benefit the cause. She agreed and designed two adorable pieces.

The necklace cost $50 and the bracelet cost $35. Kim will donate $7 to the cause for each item sold. If you are interested, contact me.

Paws for a Cause

While memory stones are on hiatus until Memorial Day weekend, that doesn't mean you and your dog have to wait to support the cause. Come on out to DogBoy's and join us for an afternoon of fun on April 24th at 1:00. We will play games, run a mini Rally course and have a dog trick contest. Prizes include a $50 Tomlinson's giftcard, $20 Alamo Drafthouse giftcard, Go Local Austin card & more. The cost is just $20 a dog and will be entirely donated to the cause. Call 251-7600 to register.

Why I Walk

You may be wondering why I walk. There really are so many reasons, but here are a couple that I want to share. I guess it has been over 40 years ago that my mother moved away from home to attend nursing school. At nursing school she became very good friends with another student named Barbara. Even after my mom completed school and moved back home, she stayed in touch with Barbara. I have many fond childhood memories of our family visiting Barbara's family over the years. Barbara was diagnosed with breast cancer when I was in my teens. She bravely battled the cancer for years. The most vivid memory that I have of Barbara is an image of her in a hospital bed in her living room during the last few days of her life. I feel blessed to have known Barbara for the short time that I did. During my early 20s I was fortunate to meet and make a very good friend at college. This friendship has continued for 15 years now. Over the years this friend has found lumps in her breast which have been tested and in some cases removed. Fortunately she has never been diagnosed with breast cancer. After I graduated from college and moved to the Washington D.C. area, I started participating in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 5K walk each summer. This event became a tradition for the 10 years that I lived in the area. I would meet up with two close friends each year at the crack of dawn and we would head down to the national mall for the event. It was a wonderful community of walkers and an opportunity to support the cause in a small way each year. Then in 2001 I saw a commercial for the Avon 3-Day Breast Cancer event. This event included a challenging walk distance of 60 miles in 3 days and $1,900 in fundraising. I was immediately convinced I needed to accept this challenge. I had never walked this far and certainly never tried to raise this much money. I signed up and participated in this event with my sister and 2 other friends in May 2002. I walked each an every mile and raised over $1,900. After this event, my grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her cancer was discovered early and treatment was effective. She has been cancer free for years. It's long overdue that I participate again. So here goes another 60 miles and $2,300 for the cause. I do it in memory of Barbara and in honor of my friend and grandmother. Please perform your breast self examinations, get your annual mammogram when the time comes and support the cause in any way you can. Because you just never know when breast cancer will impact you, family or friends.