Many ventured to the Tampa Bay area from Oct. 28to Oct. 30 to participate in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure walk. Participants walked 60 miles in three days to help raise money for breast cancer research and patient support programs.
Christen Tonry was among these partakers.
“I have participated in the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure walk for 6 years. I chose to do this walk because I can. I hope that one day there will be a cure for cancer and this is my way of contributing to the cause,” Tonry said.
For some people, 60 miles is a rigorous challenge to overcome and therefore might doubt that they will finish the walk. But for Tonry, this was not the case.
“Being that this is my 6th year participating the 60 mile walk, I am pretty familiar with what I will be expecting. I did not doubt that I would complete the walk,” Tonry said.
Along the walk, partakers will find community cheering stations and others dressed up in colorful costumes.
“On day 3, one gentleman wore a pink body suit with a cape and boots! He was some type of super hero,” Tonry said. “The cheering stations are amazing. They boost you up and help you keep walking. My parents came out to several cheer stations and I think I made a few of their own to cheer myself and my boyfriend, Andres along the walk. One great surprise while I was on the walk was the end of Day 1 and my feet are killing me and we had less than a mile to go and out pops Jenna Wysk, a 12th grade student at PHUHS, cheering and encouraging the walks along. She was there to encourage and cheer on her mother. It was great to see familiar faces along the route.”
“I was actually really excited to see [Tonry] and it made my day to see how happy it made her,” Wysk said.
In addition, the 3-Day walk allows for walkers to hear incredible stories by survivors of breast cancer and allows for an opportunity to meet a variety of people.
“The most rewarding part of the walk is meeting so many people along the 60 miles. You meet women who are survivors, women who have just finished chemotherapy, you meet men who walk for their wives or mothers. It is an amazing experience,” Tonry said. “I met many survivors along the walk. The stories they share bring tears to your eyes. These are very strong women who are fighting a battle against cancer and winning.”
The 3-Day experience then ends with a celebration and the money raised is collected and is distributed. Tonry had a goal to raise $3,000 towards the walk and ended up raising $3,180.