life in the granite state
 
Last July I participated in and completed my second Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure. At closing ceremony, I made the decision that in 2011, I'd check out the other side of it and volunteer for the 3-Day crew. It might have been because my feet were killing me (though blister free even after 60 miles!) and the thought of walking 60 miles again this year seemed something I wanted a break from.
Then my sister and her best friend told me they wanted to walk in 2011.
That changed everything. 
So in November, the three of us signed up for the Boston 3-Day, committing to months of training and fundraising to be part of one of the boldest movements in breast cancer history.
As January has come and gone about in the blink of an eye, I'm moved in to  3-Day mode full time. It consumes my brain. I'm constantly thinking about fundraisers and when to really start training. I find myself lost for hours online reading other people's 3-Day blogs and scrolling through names of other Boston walkers on the 3-Day site and seeing how much they've raised so far. 
I think I've grown addicted to the 3-Day. 
As I learned volunteering at a Getting Started Meeting a couple weeks ago, I'm not alone. And I'm not concerned. I could be addicted to worse things than raising money and awareness for a cause affects 1 in 8 women in her lifetime. 
It's a big commitment, it's a bold approach, but each year, the 3-Day raises millions of dollars for breast cancer research and educates a growing community of people to the dangers of the disease, the strides that have been made toward a cure and the hope that's out there.
I'm so excited to be walking with my sister (Monica) and her best friend (Jess). My best friend, who joined me for the 2010 3-Day (Sarah) will likely not be joining us this year (though we wish she could!) Sarah, who's long time boyfriend proposed to her two days before last year's event, will be getting married the week before the 2011 walk. Planning a wedding and preparing for the 3-Day is a lot of work, so we understand, but we hope to be able to raise enough money that she might be able to join us!
In signing up for the 3-Day, we sign up not only to walk 60-miles over a 3-day weekend, but to raising at least $2,300 in donations. It's a big number, but its absolutely achievable and even surpassable. 
I got my first, and only, donation so far via a game at Christmas time that I played -- The Great Twitter Secret Santa. It's like any Secret Santa except the field of participants spanned the globe and matches weren't guaranteed to be someone you knew. You could tell your Santa a little about yourself and let them send you a gift. I asked for my gift to be a donation to a cause I care deeply about. My $10 donation came from a woman named Amy Kate and she lives in England. I do not know her, but she was my first donor for 2011.
Many more are sure to come. 
And many more blog posts are to come as well. 
Stay tuned for a range of posts about the journey, the preparation and the fundraising.
To any other 3-Day walkers out there reading this who haven't walked before, GET EXCITED! I'm sure you're nervous but this is fun, challenging and absolutely life changing. 
I hope to see many familiar faces along the way and look forward to meeting new friends.
Here's to my 3-Day 3peat and an amazing first-time experience for Monica and Jess!
Carolyn 


Picture
Sarah and I at the end of the 2010 Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure in Boston.