6/19 Our Last Official Training Walk

Everyone is so happy!

6/18 - 8 Days and Counting

At this time next Saturday we'll be in Seattle, probably 10 or so miles into it. I can't wait! This has been such a good season - a great team filled with exceptional people.

I will be sad when it's over but am very glad for the opportunity to have been a part of something this special.

Our team raised more than $90,000 (and still counting) for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society! That will provide funds for a lot more research and moves us closer to finding a cure.

Thank you for your support!

6/4 22 Miles and Three Weeks

Wow! We're finally there - our peak training mileage. When we started in January, this day seemed very far away and now...

This has been a fabulous season. We have such a great team - very supportive of one another, dedicated and fun. I will be very sad to see it come to an end.

We leave for Seattle three weeks from today. I am very excited to do this marathon - I've heard great things about the Rock 'n' Roll marathons. I can't believe it's my first one!

Keep your fingers crossed that we have decent weather. If we all start sending out 'good weather in Seattle' vibes, I know it will make a difference.

Thank you for reading this. If you haven't already, I hope you will consider making a donation. Any amount will move us closer to a cure.

Lisa

5/17 18 Miles and Counting

Saturday was a beautiful day in Portland. Perfect for a 18-mile walk with friends.

I walked with five of my six mentees and it was wonderful to see how they are coming together as a team. They looked out for each other, encouraged each other, teased each other and just had a good time. Each of them was justifiably proud when they finished for the day.

The route was challenging and good practice for what we'll face in Seattle. We are just six weeks away from race day! Exciting and scary at the same time.

I am inching closer and closer to my fundraising goal. I hope that you will consider donating.

Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog and read about this journey. Because no matter how hard it might seem to walk a marathon, it's a heckuva lot easier than having cancer and going through chemotherapy.

Lisa

4/16 - Recommitment Day!

Today is what is known as 'recommitment day' in the Team-in-Training world. It's the day when participants decide if they will continue with the program or drop out without penalty.

People drop out for a variety of reasons but the most obvious one is for lack of funds. The last couple of events I have done have been more difficult than previous events. The economy hasn't helped and all of the natural disasters make it even harder.

I am so proud that all of the people on my walking team have recommitted! This is such great news. I have so much fun walking with them and admire their drive and determination to do a marathon (or a 1/2) and raise money.

I am a very lucky person to have so much support and so many wonderful people in my life. I am very rich, indeed!

Happy Friday,

Lisa

4/2 - Where's My Rowboat?

Yikes! It sure is a wet one out there today. I'm hoping that it's a little drier tomorrow when we do our 12 miles. But, no matter what, walking in the rain is still better than going through chemo.

Next week I'll be walking in The Race for the Roses as my training. I hope the weather is a little calmer for that!

I was walking with Tom on Wednesday. We did the Honolulu Marathon together in '08. We were talking about how we'd like to be 'out of a job' of fundraising for the LLS because a cure had been found. I hope that I see that day, sooner rather than later.

I am inching towards my goal but I need your help! Money that funds research for LLS is really money that funds all cancer research. A breakthrough in a cure for one kind of cancer will almost certainly help other types of cancer.

Please help me reach my goal!

~Lisa

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3/19 - Week Number 9

We are up to 10 miles this week. That is the farthest many people on our team have ever walked! It's a great moment for them to realize what they can do and what they will do. I love the excitement they have when they finish for the day.

What does your donation do? Here are just a few things that it can do:

• A gift of $150 will fund a Leukemia & Lymphoma Society researcher for one day.
• A gift of $500 will allow The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society to reimburse one patient for medical expenses for a year through our Patient Financial Assistance program.
• A gift of $1,000 will fund a patient education program on topics such as coping with chemotherapy and healthy cancer survivorship.

It all adds up! I just need $95 more to fund a patient education program or help TWO families with expenses. I hope you will consider donating and helping me achieve this milestone!

~Lisa

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3/10 - Rest in Peace, Hunter

We just learned that one of our honored teammates, 3-1/2-year-old Hunter lost his battle with leukemia.

Hunter was diagnosed with a particularly aggressive form of AML when he was just 14 months old. Six months ago he was able to have a bone marrow transplant but had struggled with complications since the transplant. You can read more of Hunter's story here: http://www.healinghunter.com/.

I did not have the opportunity to meet Hunter but I will carry him in my heart as I train. His story is just one of many that keeps me at this - raising money to find a cure.

If you are interested in becoming a bone marrow donor (especially if you are of mixed race), please visit http://www.marrow.org/.

Thank you for your support,

Lisa

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2/7 - Here We Go Again

Yesterday was our second training walk - four miles around the track at Grant High School. It was a drizzly morning and I always forget that it's just a little bit colder on the eastside than the westside. My toes were a little frozen when we started but it wasn't long before the feeling returned.

I love the beginning of the season. Everyone is so full of hope and promise. For many of them, this walk was the farthest they have ever walked at one time.

I also love to talk to all of the members and hear the stories of why they are training.

Leslie is walking for her cousin who passed away in August. He had a rare form of the disease and it was a hard course of treatment. He was in his forties. By participating she is helping herself to heal and honor his memory.

Hearing the stories, seeing the triumph of people who've pushed themselves to do more than they thought possible is part of what keeps me coming back.

If you have a story you'd like to share, please let me know, I'd love to hear it!

~Lisa

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Happy 2010!

It's a new year and a new marathon for me!

This will be my ninth marathon and I'm really excited about it. I'll be doing the Seattle Rock N Roll Marathon on June 26.

it's my first "Rock N Roll" marathon. I've heard good things about the other marathons in the series and I expect this to be as good. It's just the 2nd year for this marathon.

Once again I'm a walk mentor for Team in Training (TnT) and am raising money to support the research and other services that the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society supports. Please make a

donation to support my participation in Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission.

Be sure to check back frequently to see my progress. Thanks for your

support!