My 60 Reasons to go 60 Miles (twice!)

Jul 19

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  1. My sister was diagnosed with an aggressive form at the age of 27, with no history of cancer in our family.
  2. Shayna was declared “cancer-free” for almost a year before it had returned, bigger and stronger, which to that point I didn’t know it could do.
  3. It returned in the form of tumors in her brain.
  4. Shayna has two daughters.
  5. Our father passed away, so all we have left are our mother and step-mother.
  6. I have two daughters.
  7. They have a mother.
  8. Many of my best friends are female.
  9. Males can get it too!
  10. I can’t do anything directly for my sister because I’m 2200 miles away, but I can do something for the cause.
  11. I like boobies. Really, I do.
  12. Since Shayna’s diagnosis, I’ve had a cousin die of Pancreatic cancer…
  13. …and another of Lung cancer.
  14. If a cure for Breast Cancer is discovered than the landscape of cancer will be changed forever.
  15. If there was a Prostate Cancer 3-day, you can believe I’d be there too.
  16. I decided that it wasn’t all about “me” and this was a cause I could support.
  17. I’m healthy enough to do 60 miles, and many people aren’t.
  18. I have a huge network of friends and acquaintances, and I can help spread the word and fundraising shouldn’t be too incredibly difficult.
  19. I’m a wee bit nuts.
  20. I don’t go back to Michigan much, but when I do, I see how much this has changed my sister.
  21. If my sister can fight it, why shouldn’t I help? She won’t give up, so neither will I.
  22. I love San Diego and can think of few better places to walk 60 miles in 3-days.
  23. It gives me a reason to stay active and not be too lazy.
  24. I just love those stickers we get on the walk!
  25. Because people like Smile guy and Little Grin keep cheering us on.
  26. Where else can I be around thousands of women talking about boobs for 3 days and not get smacked?
  27. Because I feel strongly enough for it that I posed semi-nude for a calendar.
  28. Because I’ll try anything once.
  29. Because people have fascinating stories, and you get to interact with a bunch of people during this 3 days, most of whom you’ll never see again, all of whom touch your life.
  30. One of the houses along the beach in San Diego had a “Beer for Boobies” unofficial pit stop, that was the highlight of the 2nd day for many of us.
  31. Because it’s fun to have the bike crew stopping traffic for you to walk across the street.
  32. Those Uncrustable sandwiches are really, really good!
  33. I just want to do my part.
  34. Because it got me a few free days off of work (Friday and then Monday to recover).
  35. If all of the women who have died of and survived breast cancer can endure chemo, radiation, surgery and the roller coaster of emotions, then I can walk 60 miles in their honor.
  36. In the future, I want my children to only know Breast Cancer as something “Auntie Shayna *once* had”
  37. This year I have a wonderful girlfriend, and future wifey, and she’s got a great rack and I’d like to keep it that way.
  38. I might have grandkids someday. I want them to think of Breast Cancer the way I think of Polio or the way my kids will think of the Chicken Pox.
  39. I have two healthy legs and a healthy heart…I want to put them to good use.
  40. Last year after doing San Diego, by Friday of the following week I wasn’t sore anymore…I figured that means I can handle starting back up on another 60 miles at that point this year.
  41. I would love to do the 3-day in each city that hosts it within the next dozen years or so, and the easiest one to do first is Arizona because my step-mom lives there and it’s the closest.
  42. Because the Statue of Liberty cheering ladies had signs that said “Suck it up, Cupcake” and I’ve made that my motto to my daughters…lol…
  43. I’m not a scientist and can’t figure out a cure on my own.
  44. It gives me something different from the norm that I can put on my Evals.
  45. The outfits that people wear, especially for the first day, are about the most outrageous and entertaining things this side of a PRIDE parade.
  46. A 70 year old woman has walked the 3-Day 12 times, 100 Breast Cancer walks, over 5000 miles, raised over $1,000,000 and is walking 5 3-Days this year.
  47. To show off my pink ribbon tattoo that I got earlier this year in support of the cause.
  48. Because I don’t want any babies to go hungry without boobs to feed them. LOL.
  49. Over 10 million people in the United States are cancer survivors…they are living proof of the importance of cancer research.
  50. “A world with less cancer, is a world with more birthdays.”, American Cancer Society.
  51. More than 25% of all cancer diagnosed in women will be breast cancer.
  52. Breast cancer is the 2nd highest diagnosed cancer among US women. (skin cancer is first).
  53. Over 200,000 women in the US will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year.
  54. 50,000 of those women will die from breast cancer.
  55. Breast cancer death rates are higher for women than any other cancer besides lung cancer.
  56. Death rates have been steadily decreasing due to increased awareness, research, and early detection.
  57. One out of every eight women will be diagnosed with some form of breast cancer.
  58. Just the thought of walking with thousands of survivors and the family and friends of survivors, energizes my spirit. I can’t imagine what the actuality will feel like.
  59. The thought of walking with others who have lost a loved one to cancer humbles me.
  60. I can think of FAR MORE reasons *to* do the walk than I can think of reasons *not* to do the walk.
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About Lucas

I am, in no particular order: a father to four children; a loving husband to a wonderful wife; a Navy Chief Petty Officer currently serving on a Destroyer that is deployed; someone who lost their sister, at the age of 32, to Breast Cancer and misses her terribly; an advocate for Breast Cancer Awareness and Research; someone who has walked 4 Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure events and raised over $10,000 for the cause; the son of a former drug and alcohol addict who passed away in a homeless shelter; a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP); a holder of a Master's Degree in Information Systems; and, a 36yo man who is just trying to do right by his family and take care of them above all else. I believe that about sums me up.

Posted on July 19, 2009, in Life. Bookmark the permalink. 4 Comments.

  1. Dana | July 21, 2009 at 17:34

    Luke, i love that you made this list. i especially like reasons 11 (made me chuckle a lot), 19 (definitely giggled here too), 21, 35, 50, and 59. thank you for sharing this with everyone.

    now write some more, lol!

    Reply
  2. Barry | July 22, 2009 at 16:02

    Very Cool Luke! I have a saying in all my kids rooms,

    Life is measured not by what you do, but what you do for others.

    You are a shining example.

    Reply
  3. Luke | July 23, 2009 at 08:32

    Thanks to both of you…I am posting more Dana, I promise! I’m getting the hang of it.

    Barry, I linked to your blog as well….Just so you know. And, I agree (finally, because it took me a while to get there) about “paying it forward”, so to speak, and I hope I’m instilling that in my daughters as well. With the 5K’s for Breast Cancer, they do those with me too (Making Strides for Breast Cancer, A Walk for Hope, etc.)

    Reply

  1. Pingback: The evolution of this blog… « Stay Anchored in Hope

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