After three days of walking 20 miles each day, camping in a tent city, using porta potties, truck showers and eating food in a tent café with 2,700 other women (and a few men), my friend Carmen Andonaegui (on the right in the photo) and I ended our Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk tired and sore, but happy to have contributed to the fight against this disease.







At the University of Washington closing ceremonies on Sunday it was reported that our efforts at the Seattle 3-Day effort raised $6.9 million dollars and was still counting. Your donation helps the fight against breast cancer. More than 200,000 new cases will be diagnosed in the United States this year and more than 40,000 American women and men will lose their lives to the disease. Every 13 minutes, the disease claims another life in the United States.

My mother, Virginia Mae Grooms (nee Capper) died of the disease when I was only 16. I decidated my walk to her and carried a picture of her over the three days. On the flip side of her photo, I carriend the names of other women who were victims of, or survivors of this terrible disease. I also wore my pink "Jake's Plumbing" cap. Jake, and his mom Vivian, were my top corporate contributors and greatly helped in my fundraising efforts. (Jake is a cancer survivor himself, and had to have a leg amputated a couple years ago due to cancer- Jake is also a dog! Good dog!)