Walk, Run, Relay, Race,  …March … 3-Day Walk

The 3 – Day Breast Cancer Walk – Michigan took place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, September 26, 27, 28.  Starting at Orchard Lake Campus on Friday, walking through Plymouth on  Saturday, ending at Henry Ford Museum/Greenfield Village on Sunday.  For more information and updates on the 3 – Day Event, go to http://08.the3day.org/.  (Go to the site for pictures.)

I made it and so did my whole team.  But so did everyone that participated in the 3-Day walk.  We started together and we walked into the closing ceremonies together.   It was a weekend that will impact me for a long time. 

People walk, run, relay, race and raise money to fight cancer.   What will these events accomplish? 

What effect will a walk have in the fight against cancer?

 I’m a slow walker – every time I hear myself say that, I remember when my children were young.  I’d tell them to, “Hurry up” and they’d say, “Mom, I’m going as fast as I can.”  On Sept 26, 27,  and 28, my team (Hearts for Gretchen) and I  will walk with several thousand people - together, as fast as we can - to stand up to cancer, to fight cancer and to eradicate cancer in honor and memory of two many loved ones.

We walked in the footsteps of other great walkers, runners, relayers, racers … and marchers:

In 1926, Franklin Roosevelt purchased a spa in Warm Springs, Ga, because of “the therapeutic effects of warm spring waters. … In need of funds, … money was raised through an annual “President’s Birthday Ball. …In 1938, alarmed by decades of worsening polio epidemics and the terrible toll the virus was taking on America's young, President Roosevelt established the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis. The National Foundation emphasized the nationwide significance and non-partisan character of the polio crusade. FDR believed that people could solve any problem if they worked together. Comedian Eddie Cantor coined the phrase "March of Dimes" (playing on the popular newsreel feature "The March of Time"), appealing to radio listeners all over the country to send their dimes directly to the White House. The campaign proved to be hugely successful. The National Foundation officially changed its name to the March of Dimes in 1979.”  [Source: http://www.marchofdimes.com/aboutus/789_821.asp]

1950s – “Mothers March® is the first and longest-running March of Dimes fundraising event, with a rich and interesting history. It began in 1950 with a door-to-door campaign to fight polio a battle that was won over five decades ago and has evolved today into a campaign to give every baby a healthy start to life. Over 55 years ago...  Parents in Phoenix organized a collection: "Turn on your porch light, fight polio tonight." In minutes, more than $45,000 was raised and the annual MOTHERS MARCH® CAMPAIGN was born. Last year Mothers March® raised over $19 million and helped fund lifesaving research and programs that save babies. Mothers March has evolved today into a letter-writing campaign to give all babies a healthy start. Today volunteers are mainly recruited over the phone and mailed special volunteer kits containing cards, letters and a list of neighbors. Volunteers are asked to address, stamp and mail letters to their neighbors and then return donations back to the March of Dimes. Each year, over 600,000 volunteers participate in this historic campaign to help raise funds and awareness.”   [Source: http://www.marchofdimes.com/howtohelp/17671.asp]

In the 1980’s Rotary International began the effort to eradicate polio.  A feat that many believed impossible.  We are on the eve of eradicating polio, only the second disease to be eradicated.  Smallpox was the first.

For more information on Polio:

March of Dimes:  www.marchofdimes.com

Uniting to Beat Polio, The March Begins: http://www.marchofdimes.com/aboutus/789_821.asp

Rotary Club of Plymouth A.M.: www.plymouthrotaryam.org/

Rotary Club of Plymouth Noon: /www.clubrunner.ca/CPrg/home/homeA.asp?cid=606

Rotary Club of Canton: http://www.cantonrotary.com/

Rotary Club of Northville

Rotary International Polio Plus: www.rotary.org/en/SERVICEANDFELLOWSHIP/POLIO/Pages/ridefault.aspx

© 2008 Breast Cancer 3-Day