This past Sunday, the National Brain Tumor Society held their 3rd annual Race for Hope in Philadelphia. For the past 3 years, we have had a team. Hard to believe, but 5 years ago, I had 11 hours of surgery to remove a 3.5 x 3.7 cm epidermoid tumor from my brain stem.
I had an excellent surgeon and even more excellent friends and family that waited all that time for me to come out of surgery. It wasn't easy for them...my job was just to go to sleep and wake up at the right time. After a long recovery and having to learn how to walk again, I am now 100% back to my old self again. I am back to my old ways because of the skill of my doctors and nurses, the prayers and positive thoughts of my friends and family and the support of my mom, dad, and David. Without their support, I would not be where I am today. For that, I am eternally grateful.
I first walked in the Race for Hope in Washington, DC with my friend Michelle and her sweetie, Alain (now her hubby). I learned that they planned to organize an event in Philly just 6 months later. I signed up, and decided to run (this was before I actually ever considered running).
This year, we had 19 team members in advance of race day. Five more showed up the morning of to lend their support. All told, there were 5,000 participants and more than $500,000 was raised to fight brain tumors. It's really sad, but this event does not have many survivors, so they definitely take a moment to acknowledge the survivors that are in attendance. Approximately 40 of the 5,000 represented survivors. Too many teams are there in memory of someone. Here are some pictures from that amazing day (click on each one to see a larger version):
Yeay, survivors!!!
Me with the good Dr. Judy!
Dan and I.
Nadelle, me and Kim!
David and Tom.
David and me (with Matt making a face)
Mom.
Damn, that dude was fast!
Yeah, that's me, crossing the line just before 26:00!
Eric, Vivian, and Laurie (after she just finished in 31:00!!!)
Dad presenting Dan the winner's $1!!!
Here are the results from the day. AND, the survivors' results! David has scolded me, I have been keeping quiet, but I was the 1st place female survivor, with a time of 26:00 even!
To date, our team has raised $2,500. You guys rock!
xoxoxoxoox
