Recruiting

Last week I sent out a recruitment letter to a bunch of my friends--basically any of my friends who I thought might have the slightest interest in participating in the 3-Day with me. I have a couple of friends who have had close family members with breast cancer, so I was hopeful that someone would be moved to participate, but no such luck. I have to admit I'm a little down that no one was interested and a little discouraged that I still don't have a team. Here's the letter that I sent out:

Dear friends,

As you all know, in each of the last three years I've participated in the Breast Cancer 3-Day--a 60 mile walk that raises money for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. In 2006, just after my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer, I was recruited by my friend Cindy to walk with her team in the Kansas City event. Two years ago, when there was no KC event, I recruited my friend Vikkie to walk with me in San Diego--the largest of the 15 annual 3-Day events. The San Diego event was absolutely amazing, and I wanted my mom to have that experience, so last year I recruited her and my brother to walk 60 miles with me in southern California. As you can imagine, watching my 62-year-old mother complete all 60 miles was incredible, and last year was definitely the most meaningful of my three 3-Days. I could go on and on about what a fabulous experience the event has been, but most of you have probably heard me talk about the event in person or seen it through my pictures.

This year, even though my mom has decided not to walk, I'm planning to walk in my fourth 3-Day. I'm walking again because I still want to honor my mom and celebrate her three years of being free of breast cancer. I'm walking again because so many other women in my family and in my life have been forever changed because of this disease. I'm walking again because 15% of breast cancer survivors will someday have a recurrence. I'm walking again because I have a higher than normal risk of developing breast cancer myself. I'm walking again because I can.

My plan this year is to participate in the Dallas/Fort Worth event. It will be an easy drive and I'll be able to stay with family the nights before and after the walk. It's not until early November, and the weather in Dallas should be comfortable by that time. I'm telling you all of this because I want you to consider walking the 3-Day with me. While I will likely be participating regardless, I would much rather make the journey with friends! I'm asking all of you specifically, because you're all people that a) are in good enough shape that you could get by with just 12 weeks of training, and b) are friends that I'd love to spend more time with! Some of you have even expressed interest in the past or have a passion for fighting against breast cancer, making you the perfect person to walk with me! :)

I won't deny that this endeavor is slightly time consuming, so I totally understand if your work/school/child schedule won't allow for training and fundraising. Each participant is required to raise $2200 in order to participate, and although it's much easier than it sounds, it still requires some effort. In addition, in the month prior to the event, the Sat/Sun walks take a pretty good chunk out of the weekend. While training for a walk might seem a little unnecessary, it's definitely essential if you want to avoid blisters and other injuries! However, for the first two years I followed the 3-Day's suggested 24-week and 16-week training schedules, and I definitely felt over-prepared. Last year I modified the 16 week schedule somewhat, and still did not find the 60 miles especially challenging. This year I've devised a much shorter 12 week training schedule that I'm confident will be sufficient, and that schedule will start next week! If you'd like to see the schedule and get an idea of what it would entail, you can check it out here: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXc8jjDet9vFqP3sBFlh5a4KHMa9GD61_GxveYj2YDG47p-wFxX54EjnAcxdP6O6Zl92G-Wh_SvjEXM7D3wxVSLD5-7baEhKyNxwlzpImBgfg_Z0dWaCCUE1GhDbhsAqQgaFKGG_Us_bI/s1600-h/training09.jpg.

There's a ton more information to check out on the web if you think you might be interested. Here are just a few links:

My personal 3-Day journal--http://3dayjournal.blogspot.com/
My personal pictures 2008--http://picasaweb.google.com/kimluce99/2008112420083Day#
Pictures 2007--http://picasaweb.google.com/chadluce/20071115SanDiego#
Pictures 2006--http://picasaweb.google.com/chadluce/2006BreastCancer3Day#
The 3-Day Website--http://www.the3day.org
Some videos from the 3-Day--http://www.the3day.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Videos
(the first one is my favorite)

Should you decide to participate, I promise the 3-Day will be an experience you will never forget, especially if breast cancer has affected your life or your family in a profound way. My mom still faces the physical scars and complications from her surgeries every day. She can't forget, so I can't forget either--which is why I keep walking. As one of the participants in the video (who I actually saw again last year in San Diego) said, "I have two choices: I can be here, or not...I'm just glad I'm here." That completely expresses how I feel. I hope you'll consider being there too!! If you're at all interested...give me a shout! :)

Hugs,
kjl

Since that didn't motivate anyone to join me, I've gone out looking for anyone in the Lawrence area who might be doing Dallas this year, so that maybe I can join their team or find a training partner. I've posted a couple of messages to the 3-Day Facebook page, so hopefully someone in my area will see them and respond! I feel like a walker without a home!!