Over the next few months our team of four women will be blogging about our experiences in training and preparing for The Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk.  The Breast Cancer 3-Day is a three day, 60 mile walk, and we will be walking in Philadelphia this coming October.  Each week leading up to the walk, one "Mama" from our team will be writing about her experiences through this incredible journey.  We call ourselves "Mamas with a Mission" and I am Mama 4!

I am the captain of our team, and I am also the only participant who has done the walk before.  I was supposed to walk the 3-Day in September of 2005 with 12 of my sorority sisters from Millersville University.  We worked very hard raising money for the event and spreading the word about The Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk (In 2005, no one had ever heard of this event).  Unfortunately, I was unable to participate in the actual walk because I found out I was pregnant with my second child shortly before the walk took place.  I was very disappointed to not be able to participate in the actual event, because I had put so much time and effort into the entire process!

Two years later in 2007, the team decided to do the walk again.  This time I was able to participate again and I actually completed the walk with my team!  What an amazing experience!  It is a truly life changing event, and it is something that has changed my life forever.  To not only know that I raised money to help women who are battling cancer, to honor women who have fought the battle, and to hopefully prevent women from needing to walk in the future was beyond words.

True, it was a physically demanding three days.  But, the emotional joy and rewards that I received made the blisters, sore muscles, and tired feet all worth it.  Walking the streets of Philadelphia, we had the opportunity to pass children on the playgrounds of various schools who made posters to cheer us on.  We heard applause around every corner thanking us for what we were doing.  I received hugs from women standing on sidewalks, scarves wrapped around their heads to hide their bald scalps, crying and thanking us for what we were doing for them.  I met husbands and children who had lost their wives and mothers to breast cancer.  How could I complain about a sore muscle or a blister that needed a band-aid?

So, this is how "Mamas with a Mission" came to be.  After walking in 2007, I wanted to start a group of strong, determined, and motivated mothers in Lancaster who wanted to help me spread the word about prevention, finding a cure, and fighting this awful disease.  We are determined to meet our goal of $10,000 by October.  And, I cannot wait for my fellow "Mamas" to have the experience of a lifetime like I did two years ago.

This is why I walk.....because I can't turn my back on all of the women, men, mothers, fathers, and children who are affected by this disease every day.  They may not be standing on every street corner screaming their story, but they are out there every day trying to survive. 

To find out more about The Breast Cancer 3-Day and how you can help, go to www.the3day.org