We Did It!

One week ago yesterday, my Relentless Optimism teammates and I walked across the finish line of the Boston 2010 3 Day for the Cure!

Jen and I on the route!

It was a long, hot, emotional weekend but one that I would gladly take on again and again.  Having my life long best friends by my side for this incredible journey was wonderful - we laughed, we cried, we ached and in the end, we were arm in arm as we walked into Closing Ceremonies, 60 miles closer to a world a without breast cancer.

I have so many stories to share with all of you and I will do my best to start posting my thoughts and stories from the event soon.  However, I am in the last throes of my PhD thesis and now that the hard work of training is behind me, I really do need to refocus my efforts on my school work.  But rest assured, Kristen is still walking and will still be posting!  (To lapse into the third person for a minute...)

The first goal for KW will be to catch up on my Blog Link posts from the last few weeks.  A lot of people in the 3 Day community have mentioned how much they appreciate those posts and I love putting them together, so that will be happening this week.  I am also hard at work touching up my photos from the 3 Day (over 600!) in order to post them online ASAP.  And once those photos are up, it will be story time!

Thank you all so very much for your support of me and my teammates throughout this adventure.  It has meant more to me than I can possibly say!

With my teammates at the finish line!

Oh, and don't forget!  There is still time to donate!  We can accept donations up until four weeks after the walk (so three weeks from today!).  If you would still like to donate, you can do so on my personal donation page on the the 3 Day website.  Thanks!

***Please note that both of the photos in this post are courtesy of Brian Ristuccia, who was taking photos throughout the Boston 3 Day and kindly posted them on Facebook for all of the walkers and crew members to see.  Thank you Brian!

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Our Team Shirts!

(Note: This was cross-posted from the Relentless Optimism team blog because I was just too excited not to share!)

Things are really moving here at Relentless Optimism headquarters, with the Boston 3 Day for the Cure stepping off in just five days!  Our team banner was delivered, our article was published in our hometown paper and now, our team shirts have arrived!

The Official Relentless Optimism Walker shirt!

We are incredibly excited to have our own team shirts this year to wear throughout the 3 Day event.  This will be my third 3 Day event and it will be the first time that my teammates and I have had matching shirts for the walk.  We truly feel like a team now!

Our team shirts were generously provided for our team by Mag Mom Diana Moreland and her company Diana's Costume Closet who we cannot thank enough for her support of our team.  The shirts feature another version of the Relentless Optimism logo on our team banner that was again created for us by Robyn Torkewitz.  If you would like Robyn to design something for your team, you can see more of her work and find her contact information here.

Playing supermodel in our team shirts before a training walk.

For our shirts, we worked closely with Custom Ink to get everything just right.  If you are interested in ordering something similar for your team or event, I highly recommend them.  They will work with you to ensure the clearest possible printing of your design and will check in with you at every possible.  I worked with a wonderful guy named Neil who was incredibly patient with me as I made change after change to our design.  Even after five different proofs, we still received our shirts three days earlier than expected.  I really can't say enough great things about Custom Ink!

For those who are wondering, our shirts are the Augusta Lades Performance Sleeveless Ts.  I tried mine out on a training walk and it was great!  No weird seams and no pulling.  If you are looking to order shirts for the 3 Day, this really is an excellent choice.

A closer look at the back of shirts, featuring our team sponsors (click to enlarge).  

Some small changes were made from this proof to the final versions of our shirts for clarity.

I can't wait to hit the streets of Boston in our new team shirts.  If you see us out walking, please be sure to say hello!

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We're Famous!

(Cross-posted from the Relentless Optimism Team Blog)

This past week, we were incredibly honored when our hometown newspaper, the Cortland Standard, chose to run a long feature about our team for the Boston 3 Day for the Cure.  Our article, which was titled "Beating Breast Cancer in a Big Way", was written by Life and Living editor Katie Hall.  The feature took up almost a whole page of the paper and included two photos.  The first photo was taken by longtime Cortland Standard photographer Bob Ellis of our teammate Melissa Moreland Campos on one of her early morning training walks and the second photo was one of my photos that shows the four of us walkers at our 10 year high school reunion in 2008.

Unfortunately, there isn't a digital copy of the article available.  However, my mom (Karen Sager) was nice enough to scan the article for us so that we could share it with all of you.  Larger versions of each image are available by clicking on the photos.

Enjoy!

Melissa on her training walk in Homer, New York

 Our article!  Click to enlarge so you can read it!

We are incredibly thankful to Katie and the entire staff of the Cortland Standard for featuring our efforts.  While most of us have moved out the area now, we are all true Homer girls at heart.  Our hometown is small and tight nit and having this kind of publicity can really go a long way towards helping us to reach our fundraising goals.  As you can tell from this article, this is a cause that is very near and dear to our hearts.  Having the support of our community behind us as we take to the streets next week in Boston truly means the world to all of us!

If you have been moved by our story and would like to help us reach our fundraising goals, you can make a donation at our team fundraising page on the 3 Day website.  You can also reach each of our personal pages directly by clicking on our names in the right hand side bar. 

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Relentless Optimism Thanks You!

(Note:  I'm cross-posting this from our team blog so that everyone sees it!)

All of us here at Relentless Optimism are incredibly grateful for every donation that we have received this year.  We would not be able to do this crazy thing that is the 3 Day without the support of our friends, family and generous strangers.  The primary goal of the Breast Cancer 3 Day is to raise money to help find a cure for breast cancer.  It is because of the generosity of all of our donors and supporters that we are now that much closer to achieving a world without breast cancer.

We are incredibly thankful for and overwhelmed by the number of donations that we have received in pursuit of our team goal of raising $20,000 before the end of August.  We are thankful for every single person that entered one of our fundraising contests or bought flowers through Flower Power.  We are thankful for everyone that supported us through Tastefully Simple or Mary Kay.  If you bought some stuff through our Amazon link or clicked on our Google Ads before they were shut down, well, we're thankful to you too.  It is because of all of you that we have been able to raise so much money for such an important cause.

Because we are so touched by the enormous generosity that has been sent our way, we want everyone to know all of your names.  Shouting all of your names from a hilltop is little too difficult and hiring a skywriter to write all your names in the clouds is a little too expensive.  So instead of all that, we have chosen to instead recognize each and every one of our donors and sponsors on a large banner that will be proudly on display between our tents during the Boston 3 Day for the Cure!

Our team banner, courtesy of Vistaprint!

(Click to enlarge)

I am thrilled that we are able to recognize all of our supporters in such a public way.  If you donated to us in any way before July 1st, then your name is in there and everyone in Boston will know it.  We are truly honored that you have all thrown your support behind us and we hope that we can make you all proud as we walk up and down the streets of Boston in just under two weeks time.  

I also would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge my cousin Robyn Torkewitz who designed the spiffy new Relentless Optimism logo that you see on our banner.  She also designed a second logo for our team shirts that we will be showing off in Boston as well.  Robyn is a very talented graphic designer and we're thrilled that she donated her services to us in this way.  If you would like to see more of her work, you can find her personal website here. 

Finally, if you will be walking in the Boston 3 Day for the Cure, please be on the look out for our banner!  If you happen to spot us in the sea of pink tents, please be sure to stop by and say hi!

THANK YOU!  THANK YOU!  THANK YOU!

Image courtesy of Leanne Johnston.

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Support Relentless Optimism by Shopping with Mary Kay!

As I've mentioned in my Week in Review posts, my team for the 3 Day, Relentless Optimism is currently hosting a Mary Kay sale to help raise money for the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure!  Since there are only two days left in this sale, I figure it's about time that I posted about it here as well!

For those who don't know, Mary Kay is a health and beauty company that uses direct sales to bring their great products to people all over the country at an affordable price.  By purchasing make up, skin care and other assorted beauty products through our collaboration with Mary Kay, you will be helping our team reach our fundraising goals for the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure.  Simply by shopping through the link below and noting that your purchase is for "Relentless Optimism" or the "Breast Cancer 3 Day", a portion of the proceeds will be directly credited to our team.  It's just another easy way for everyone to support our team!

Click here to purchase Mary Kay products in support of Relentless Optimism!

For this fundraiser, Relentless Optimism will be working with a wonderful teacher from Homer High School, Mme. Carol Agate.  Mme. Agate was Jen's French teacher all through high school and was a friend of Jen's mom Marcia before she passed away.  Mme. Agate is also a breast cancer survivor herself and feels very passionately about raising money to find a cure for this awful disease.  Mme. Agate actually contacted us about hosting this sale and has generously offered to donate her FULL commission from all of our Mary Kay sales to our team.  That means Relentless Optimism will receive 50% of the value of each purchase made through this sale!  This is incredibly generous of Mme. Agate and we cannot thank her enough for helping us out with this fundraiser!

Please note that this sale will end on June 30th, so please do your shopping early!

Thank you so much for continuing to support our team in our effort to raise $20,000 for breast cancer research!

As always, if you would prefer to support me or my teammates directly, you can do so by visiting the Relentless Optimism team page on the 3 Day website and clicking on the names of each of our teammates or by visiting my personal page here.

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Happy Mother's Day!

A belated but heartfelt wish for a the happiest of Mother's Days to all of my Mom friends out there!

I especially want to take a minute to recognize my three favorite 3 Day walker Moms:  my Relentless Optimism teammates Mickey, Jen and Mel.  I am in awe of how you all balance your various commitments and I'm honored to walking with all of you this summer in Boston!

Mickey and her kids Jonah and Nina (L) and Jen and her kids Joey and Ryan (R)

Mel and her daughter Reese

Welcome to Relentless Optimism Michelle!

We are very excited to introduce everyone to the newest member of Relentless Optimism - Michelle Niescierenko!

Michelle is a pediatrics/ER doctor in Boston and has registered to be part of the Medical Crew for the Boston 3 Day!  Michelle is smart, enthusiastic and is generally better at life than most people.  She spends a lot of time traveling the globe saving sick babies and doing other incredible things and we're thrilled that she's going to take some time to help us out as well.  As a crew member, Michelle does not have a required fundraising minimum.  However, she has graciously offered to help out the other members of Relentless Optimism to reach our personal and team fundraising goals.

Welcome to the team Michelle!  We're so glad you decided to join us on this adventure!

Michelle and Kristen in Boston in 2008.

If you're interested in becoming a member of Relentless Optimism, now is the time to act!  For a limited time only, you can use the code GOTEAM to get $25 off of your registration fee when you sign up to be part of our 3 Day team.  To register online today, please click here.  Whether your interested in walking, crewing or being part of the Medical Crew, we want you!

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Flower Power Fundraising Reminder - Only one week left!!

Just a quick post to remind everyone about our ongoing team fundraiser for the Komen 3 Day for the Cure:  Flower Power Fundraising!

Spring has now sprung all around the country meaning it's time to get dirty and start planting your gardens!  If you or someone you know is a gardener, we strongly encourage you to please consider purchasing some or even all of your garden plants through our account with Flower Power Fundraising:

http://www.flowerpowerfundraising.com/campaign?campaign_id=1161

Through our collaboration with Flower Power Fundraising, 50% of all of the sales made through our team account will be donated to Relentless Optimism's fundraising efforts for the Komen 3 Day for the Cure.  What's really great about this fundraising program is that our partner, Flower Power Fundraising, is totally committed to our cause. They are putting out top-quality, best-selling flower bulbs and plants, ship directly to you and they're giving us a 100% satisfaction guarantee. You can't beat that!

To support our team and start shopping for your flowers, simply click on the link above (or the button below) and start shopping.  In addition, if you know anyone that you think might be interested in this fundraiser, please feel free to pass on this information.   Flowers can be purchased to support our team until Friday, April 23rd.

You can learn more about Flower Power Fundraising on their webpage and you can learn more about the Komen 3 Day for the Cure here.  

Thanks for all your support and happy gardening!

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Two New, Free Ways to Support Relentless Optimism!

If you've visited the Relentless Optimism Fundraising blog over the last few days, you may have noticed a few changes to our sidebar in the form of ads.  After some discussion, we have decided to "monetize" our blog to help us raise money for the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure by participating in the Amazon Associates program.  Rest assured, we are not trying to make any money off our team blog for ourselves.  Rather, it is our hope that through this partnership, we can give everyone an opportunity to support Relentless Optimism in the Boston 3 Day for the Cure without having to spend an extra dime of their own money.  To learn all the details, please read on!

Amazon Associates

Relentless Optimism has now formed a mutual partnership with Amazon.com as part of their Amazon Associates program.  Through this program, we agree to provide free advertising for Amazon and their products on our blog.  In exchange, every time someone accesses Amazon.com through a link on our blog, we get a small kickback from the sale of up to 15% of the sale total donated to our team for the 3 Day.  It's just as simple as that! 

To support Relentless Optimism in this way, anytime you are doing any shopping on Amazon.com, please visit either Kristen Walks or the Relentless Optimism fundraising blog first.  Then scroll down the right hand sidebar of either site until you see the Amazon search box under the heading "Support Relentless Optimism by Shopping with Amazon!".  Enter whatever it is you're looking for in the search box and you will be automatically redirected to the Amazon.com website to make your purchase just like you normally would.  Once you're there, you can add as many items to your shopping cart as you want.  You only have to click through our website when you first enter the Amazon website.  And that's it.  You don't have to add an additional donation to your total or enter a promotional code or anything!

Please note that regardless of which blog you access Amazon through, all of the funds generated through this program will be donated to Relentless Optimism as a team.

Oh, and one last point.  If you are using an ad-blocking program, you will not be able to view either the Amazon ads at the bottom of each post or the Amazon search box (although the "Support Us..." heading should still show up).  Simply turning off your ad blocker will make them visible.  Trust me, I learned this one the dumb way.

So now that we've made it so easy to support us, what are you waiting for?  Get shopping on Amazon today!

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Calling all Medical Professionals!

The organizers of the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure are currently in need of people for their  Health Services Crew!

Because of the physical toll that walking 60 miles in 3 days can take on a body, the Medical Crew are some of the most important crew members on the 3 Day.  The Health Services team, as they are officially called, are the largest crew team on the event, comprised of nearly 100 medical professionals.  RNs, MDs, EMTs, physical therapists, chiropractors and athletic trainers help keep the walkers, crew and volunteers on the 3 Day healthy, hydrated and happy during the event.  If you or someone you know is a licensed medical professional in one of the states hosting a 3 Day event this year, please think about becoming a part of the Medical Crew!

Joining the 3 Day Medical Crew is a four day commitment (three days on event and a 1/2 day of training before the event).  There is a $90 registration fee (just like for the walkers) that covers all of your expenses on the event.  You will live in the pink tent city with all of the walkers and crew and will fully be a part of the 3 Day experience.  There is no fundraising required for crew members, but it is always appreciated and encouraged.  If you are interested in helping us out in this way, please visit www.the3day.org or call 800-996-3DAY to register today.  You can also become a crew member of Relentless Optimism (our team for the Boston event) by going to our team page on the 3 Day website and clicking "Register to join team" in the box where our team members are listed.

I know I have a lot of friends who are doctors, nurses, ATs and the like.  PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE consider joining us in Boston and being a part of the awesome Medical Crew!!

Mel checking in with the Medical Crew at lunch on Day 2, Atlanta 2007

PS - According to today's KomenLink newsletter, if you register between April 12 – 23 and use the promotional code TEAMKOMEN at checkout, you will get a $25 discount off the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure™ registration!  An added incentive to register for the Medical Crew!

All about our latest team fundraising contests!

Our team for the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure is currently running our final two fundraising contests: March Madness and it's more fashionable cousin Fug Madness, courtesy of www.gofugyourself.com.  The basics of both contests are laid out here and more information is available at our team fundraising blog.

March Madness

This is the big one!  In the grand tradition of March Madness pools everywhere, we have set up a pool where everyone can submit their brackets predicting who will win the 2010 NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship tournament.  For those that don't know, the NCAA March Madness tournament features the top 64 men's college basketball teams.  The teams are divided into four brackets and the tournament is single elimination until only one team is remaining and is crowned National Champion.  

For our March Madness pool, we are using the brackets and tournament set up at www.ESPN.com.  The name for our league on ESPN is "Relentless Optimism" and the password to join our league is "Optimism".  In order to enter, you will be asked to sign up for a free ESPN.com account if you don't already have one.  From there, you will be asked to pick a winner for each game in the tournament.  Don't worry if you don't know anything about college basketball, you can just guess.  Who knows, you may pick a long shot that goes all the way!  Each correct pick will win you points, with the later rounds of the tournament being worth more points than the earlier rounds.  The person with the highest total points in our league at the conclusion of the final game on April 5th will win our cash prize.  Please note that there is a play in game on Tuesday, March 16th that we will not be scoring in our contest.

The NCAA tournament starts in the afternoon on Thursday, March 18th.  Our league will officially be closed to new entries when the first game starts, so be sure to get your brackets in early. 

Click here to visit the Relentless Optimism March Madness League page on ESPN.com

For more information about the March Madness fundraiser, please visit this page on the Relentless Optimism team blog.

Fug Madness

The second tournament-style contest that we will be running is called "Fug Madness".  If you prefer fashion to foul shots, this is the contest for you!  Fug Madness is run by the hilarious ladies at www.gofugyourself.com.  For those that don't know, Go Fug Yourself is a very funny blog written by two girls expressing their feelings on all of the wacky things that celebrities wear out in public.  Fug Madnessis their annual contest to determine who was the worst dressed celebrity of the previous year.  The "Fug Girls", as the authors are called, will be releasing their ranked list of the top 64 worst dressed celebrities, also broken down into four brackets.  Then, as with March Madness, each celebrity faces off head to head with their opponent, with the readers of Go Fug Yourself voting to determine the winner.  Celebs are eliminated one at a time until only one person is left standing.  To read more about how Fug Madness works, please visit the FAQ page.

 
To enter our contest, you will need to download a copy of the Fug Madness bracket and fill it in on your own, selecting which person you think will come out on top in each head to head match up.  A downloadable, fill in - able PDF version of the bracket can be found by clicking on the link below.  When you're done, email your completed brackets (with your name and email address) back to me at kscincotta@gmail.com and I will compile them.

 
Click here to get the downloadable Fug Madness Bracket!

 

Scoring will be done exactly like in March Madness, with correct predictions in later rounds being worth more points than earlier round picks.  The first match ups kick off on Thursday, March 18th at which point we will no longer be accepting entries.  Please note that just like in March Madness, there is also a play in "game" for Fug Madness that will not be scored in our league.  Results will be updated here on the team fundraising blog throughout the tournament.  The person in our league with the most points following the championship game on April 5th will be declared the winner.  

 
For more information about the Fug Madness fundraiser, please visit this page on the Relentless Optimism team blog.

 
Important Notes

Please note that both contests are fundraisers for our team for the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure.  For each entry that you submit to either contest, we are requesting a $10 donation to our 3 Day team.  Donations can be made using the Paypal "Donate" button at the top right hand side of our team fundraising blog, which can be found here.  Clicking the links to either bracket will take you away from this site, so please bookmark it so that you remember to make your donations.

The winner of each contest will receive a cash prize equal to half the money collected for that specific contest.  If a member of Relentless Optimism wins either contest, all of the money from that contest will be donated to our team for the 3 Day.  If there is a tie in either contest, a name will be chosen from a hat to determine the recipient of the cash prize for that contest.

Finally, word of mouth is the most effective tool we have to generate entries for these contests.  The more entries we get, the larger the cash prize for the winner and more importantly, the more money we can raise for a really great cause.  Even if you don't enter yourself, please pass on this information to anyone that you think might be interested. 

Last Call for our Fantasy Winter Olympics League!

I just wanted to remind everyone that entries for our Fantasy Winter Olympics League are due by 8pm tonight to be eligible to win our cash prize!

For our Fantasy Winter Olympics League, each participant will be asked to select 12 countries to comprise their team.  Over the course of the Vancouver Winter Olympics, we'll be tracking how many medals each country wins.  In the end, the team whose countries have won the most medals will be crowned champion of our league and will win a cash prize equal to half the money raised for this contest. As always, we are only asking for a $10 donation to our team per entry and you can enter as many times as you like.  The more times you enter, the better your chance to win!

All of the details about our Fantasy Olympics League, including instructions about how to enter, can be found in the official contest blog post.  

 

(Cross-posted from the Relentless Optimism Fundraising Blog)

The Super Bowl Contest - RESULTS!

The results are in for the Relentless Optimism Super Bowl contest!  

You can see all of the details about the contest and find out who won over on our team fundraising blog.  While you're there, you can also read about all of ongoing fundraising efforts, including our Fantasy Winter Olympics League which is taking entries until 8pm on Thursday, February 11th.  Get your entries in today so you don't miss out!

Reminder!

We are currently accepting entries for two fundraising contests over at the Relentless Optimism team blog!

First and foremost, we are only accepting entries for our Super Bowl fundraiser until 8pm tomorrow night.  We've had a good number of entries thus far with more sure to come in tomorrow, meaning our cash prize just keeps growing.  If you strongly believe in the Power of Peyton or the Brilliance of Brees, put your money where your mouth is and enter our contest.  If you have no idea what that means, you should still enter the contest.  In the end, it's really all about who makes the best guesses anyways.  Besides, even if you lose, the money we raise is going to a great cause!  Just don't hesitate -  get your entries in before it's too late!

Second, we opened up "registration" for our Fantasy Winter Olympics League on Monday morning.  Each participant in our league will be asked to select 12 countries to comprise their team.  Over the course of the Vancouver Winter Olympics, we'll be tracking how many medals each country wins.  In the end, the team whose countries have won the most medals will be crowned champion of our league and will win a cash prize equal to half the money raised for this contest.  Opening Ceremonies are in a little over a week, so register your team today!

As always, we are only asking for a $10 donation per entry per contest to be entered to win the cash prize.  Enter as many times as you want, there's no limit.  Finally, the more people that enter, the larger the cash prize and the more money we can raise for our Breast Cancer 3 Day team so please help us get the word out to anyone that you know that might be interested!

To learn more about the Super Bowl Contest, please click here.  To learn more about the Fantasy Winter Olympics League, please click here.  

The Super Bowl Contest

Just a quick post to remind everyone about our current fundraising contest taking place over at the Relentless Optimism fundraising blog.  Click on over to read about how you can support our team and enter to win a small cash prize just by predicting the outcomes of the upcoming Super Bowl.  

Remember, entries are due by 8pm on Friday, February 5th so don't delay!  And please help us spread the word - the more people who enter, the more money we can raise and the more money you can win!

Thanks,

Kristen

Just a reminder about the Golden Globes Fundraising Contest

This is just a short note to remind everyone that this is the last day to enter our team fundraising contest.  For a small donation to our team, you can enter to win a small cash prize for correctly guessing the most winners of the 2010 Golden Globes Awards.  You can find all of the details at our team blog:

http://relentlessoptimismfundraising.blogspot.com/2010/01/golden-globes-prediction-contest.html

Thanks for entering and good luck!

Kristen

The Golden Globes Prediction Contest!

To kick off our fundraising efforts, my team for the Breast Cancer 3 Day, Relentless Optimism, is running a fun contest to predict the winners of the upcoming Golden Globes!  The basic gist is that everyone who enters makes a small donation to our team and then submits their best guesses as to who will win.  At the end of the contest, whoever had the most correct predictions will win a cash prize equal to half the money that we collect with the rest of the money going to our team.  All of the details can be found over on our team blog at:

http://relentlessoptimismfundraising.blogspot.com/2010/01/golden-globes-prediction-contest.html

I encourage everyone to head over to that blog, read all about our contest and submit your entries (before Friday, February 15th at 8pm).  Once you're done, please help us spread the word!  You can use the handy links at the bottom of the blog post to post the information to your Facebook pages, blogs and email lists.  Remember, the more entries we get, the more money we can raise for a really great cause!

Thanks for playing along and good luck!

Kristen

I'm back!

It's been about six months since I last posted, but I'm back and ready to go!

After much thought and deliberation, I have decided that I WILL be walking in the Breast Cancer 3-Day again in 2010. And not only that, but I have recruited three of my very best friends to join me this time around for the Boston walk in July. We have a long way to go before we get there, but we're getting a head start this year.

As many of you know, we lost my best friend Jen's mom, Marcia, to breast cancer last April. Throughout her battle, Marcia was one of the most ardent supporters of my 3 Day efforts . She wrote me a note during the 2007 3 Day expressing her support, saying that it was "with great hope" that one day, she would be well enough to participate in the 3 Day herself. Sadly, she was never able to fulfill that goal. This year, our team, including Jen, will pick up that torch and walk in Marcia's stead. This year, we are walking for Marcia.

One of the things that was so remarkable about Marcia was her relentless spirit of optimism throughout her ordeal. With that spirit as our inspiration, we have decided to name our 2010 3 Day team "Relentless Optimism" because it is with relentless optimism that we face our biggest challenge: to end breast cancer once and for all!

Please be sure to check back often - I am planning a whole series of posts throughout the next 8+ months, focusing on everything from my fundraising efforts and training to updates about what's going on in breast cancer research and beyond. In addition, we have also started a team blog to help us in our fundraising efforts that can be found at:

http://relentlessoptimismfundraising.blogspot.com/

There, you will find the details of all of our team fundraising activities, training updates and even a link to our new sponsor, Diana's Costume Closet. I have included a link to our team blog as well as a link to my personal fundraising page and more in the sidebar to help you out. Or if you prefer, you can add both of these blogs to your RSS reader of choice using the widget in the sidebar in order to get the most timely updates from me and my team!

Thanks so much for following along. It means so much to me to have so much support from all of my friends and family as I take on this huge challenge yet again!

Kristen