West Dundee resident Denise Martorano had been asking friends to do the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer for several years but the time and financial commitment kept everyone from getting involved.
"We all have someone - who can be affected by breast cancer," Martorano said.
Then last June, Martorano was diagnosed with the disease. This weekend she is walking in the 7th annual Chicago Avon Walk with a team of five other women, two of whom are also survivors.
Eloise Caggiano, program director for the Avon Walk and breast cancer survivor, said the walk represents "a sense of hope" for participants.
The event is one of nine taking place across the country and begins Saturday, June 6, at 6:30 a.m. Participants will meet at Soldier Field for the opening ceremony.
Long Grove resident Maureen Sexson had just completed a half iron man when she was diagnosed with breast cancer last August. She is walking this year with 22 other women.
Walkers commit to raising at least $1,800 and can complete a marathon or a marathon and a half through Chicago and the Near North suburbs.
Martorano and her friends have raised more than $13,000 and Sexson's team has raised more than $63,000.
Saturday night, walkers will eat, shower and relax with planned activities. The walk resumes Sunday morning and concludes back at Soldier Field with the closing ceremony. The Avon Foundation will then award grants to breast cancer organizations in the greater Chicago area who fund research and provide women with medical help.
"It's a very scary situation to be in," Caggiano said. "There's so many people who don't go get a mammogram because they're afraid to miss a day of work."
The walk is run solely through volunteer work. People who want to get involved can still do so by looking for cheering stations at avonwalk.org. Sexson's husband, three children, and parents are volunteering.
Through 2008, the Avon Foundation had awarded more than $36.2 million to organizations in Illinois and the surrounding areas.
Caggiano said all of the walks, including the Chicago event, are growing.
"I think its something that people really latch on to and can connect with," she said. "Just about everybody has been touched by breast cancer in one way or another."
The walk helps get information about breast cancer to the community and advancements in health care allow mammograms to detect more than they did 10 years ago.
Sexson said she made sure to get mammograms once a year after losing a close friend to breast cancer. Her cancer had not been visible one year before her diagnosis.
Three weeks after undergoing a mastectomy, Sexson ran 17 miles in the Chicago Marathon. She said breast cancer research has led to the development of new medications, treatments and therapies.
"It's changed the face of breast cancer," Sexson said. "It doesn't mean that it is a death sentence anymore if it's caught early."
Martorano agreed. "There's so much you can do now. If I had waited six months or a year to get my mammogram, I would have been at a whole other stage of the cancer and things could have been a lot different."
"We all have someone - who can be affected by breast cancer," Martorano said.
Then last June, Martorano was diagnosed with the disease. This weekend she is walking in the 7th annual Chicago Avon Walk with a team of five other women, two of whom are also survivors.
Eloise Caggiano, program director for the Avon Walk and breast cancer survivor, said the walk represents "a sense of hope" for participants.
The event is one of nine taking place across the country and begins Saturday, June 6, at 6:30 a.m. Participants will meet at Soldier Field for the opening ceremony.
Long Grove resident Maureen Sexson had just completed a half iron man when she was diagnosed with breast cancer last August. She is walking this year with 22 other women.
Walkers commit to raising at least $1,800 and can complete a marathon or a marathon and a half through Chicago and the Near North suburbs.
Martorano and her friends have raised more than $13,000 and Sexson's team has raised more than $63,000.
Saturday night, walkers will eat, shower and relax with planned activities. The walk resumes Sunday morning and concludes back at Soldier Field with the closing ceremony. The Avon Foundation will then award grants to breast cancer organizations in the greater Chicago area who fund research and provide women with medical help.
"It's a very scary situation to be in," Caggiano said. "There's so many people who don't go get a mammogram because they're afraid to miss a day of work."
The walk is run solely through volunteer work. People who want to get involved can still do so by looking for cheering stations at avonwalk.org. Sexson's husband, three children, and parents are volunteering.
Through 2008, the Avon Foundation had awarded more than $36.2 million to organizations in Illinois and the surrounding areas.
Caggiano said all of the walks, including the Chicago event, are growing.
"I think its something that people really latch on to and can connect with," she said. "Just about everybody has been touched by breast cancer in one way or another."
The walk helps get information about breast cancer to the community and advancements in health care allow mammograms to detect more than they did 10 years ago.
Sexson said she made sure to get mammograms once a year after losing a close friend to breast cancer. Her cancer had not been visible one year before her diagnosis.
Three weeks after undergoing a mastectomy, Sexson ran 17 miles in the Chicago Marathon. She said breast cancer research has led to the development of new medications, treatments and therapies.
"It's changed the face of breast cancer," Sexson said. "It doesn't mean that it is a death sentence anymore if it's caught early."
Martorano agreed. "There's so much you can do now. If I had waited six months or a year to get my mammogram, I would have been at a whole other stage of the cancer and things could have been a lot different."