Race for a Cure with #Pak4ACure

Note: This post is sponsored by Valpak.

When I went to bed on Friday night before the Susan G. Komen Race for a Cure on Saturday, I was a little nervous. Not because I was scared to participate. Nope, I was excited to participate on behalf of Valpak and their Pak4ACure Campaign (remember when I was prepping for Race for a Cure?). I was nervous because it was currently thunder-storming and it was supposed to keep raining all night and into the morning. But oh well! I laid out all of my things and went to bed nice and early anyways. When I woke up though, the rain was gone! It was a little overcast, but there was no rain on the forecast until later that afternoon! It was off to the races for me.

The Starting Grounds for Race for the Cure

Once I arrived, the starting point at Freedom Plaza in downtown DC was alive with energy. Tents were set up all over allowing walkers and runs to fuel up with granola bars, bananas, and water bottles. Participants could pick up their t-shirts and there was event a special VIP tent for the top fundraising team.

My favorite part though, was that they had created a V-VIP tent for breast cancer survivors. There they had the opportunity to meet with each other on in a much more intimate setting.

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The Pump Up

After I wandered around for a bit, they gathered everyone around the main stage for opening words. They had a lot of great speakers from the events sponsors, but my favorite part was when they awarded the Survivor of the Year and So-Survivor of the Year awards. Patty Brownstein won the award for Survivor of the year and she told us her story about her battle with breast cancer and how she had now been cancer free for multiple years.

Then Peter Loftus was brought on to be given the Co-Survivor of the Year award. Peter told us about his incredibly strong mother and her battle with breast cancer. She was there with him to join in the walk today!

After sharing some incredible stories, they started the countdown and then 3…2…1…and we’re off!

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The Walk for a Cure with Pak4ACure

We’ll ignore the fact that it started raining during the walk because the walk was by far the best part. All of the survivors were wearing pink shirts, so you could see while you were walking that you were surrounded by breast cancer survivors. I chose to walk, not run, but about half way through the walk, we saw the runners start to come back towards us, completing their run. With every runner that ran past we cheered them on and encouraged them to keep going.

The rain started about half way through (and lasted for about 10 minutes), but it didn’t slow anyone down. We all just pulled out our umbrellas and kept on going. It was so inspiring to see no one even losing pace or even seem phased.

As we reached the finish line, survivors were able to walk down their own pink carpet where they were awarded with medals.

Did you love hearing about my experience? Do you want to participate as well?

Don’t worry, you still can! Events like these aren’t limited to DC. Susan G. Komen hosts a series of 5K runs and fitness walks that raise significant funds and awareness for the breast cancer movement. They also celebrates breast cancer survivorship and honors those who have lost their battle with the disease. If you’re interested in donating to the cause or looking for more information, you can visit their page here.

One of the reasons I was excited to participate with Valpak is that they’re committed to supporting men and women who have developed breast cancer in addition to their families. Additionally, this year (2018), Valpak has committed to donating at least $50,000 to Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Let me know if you plan on joining a future Race for the Cure in your committee or if you’re participating in any other upcoming walks or races!