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If you’ve seen this determined group of ladies waking and walking often, that’s because they’ve joined together to participate in the Pledge the Pink Walk at Hilton Head Island. Over the course of 3 days, they will walk 30 miles with many other participants to raise awareness and funds to fight breast cancer. Since 2019, the team has grown from two members to nine members. 

Pledge the Pink organization, formed in 2011, has provided over $1 million dollars to organizations such as Mayo Clinic, American Cancer Society, Volunteers in Medicine and many more. Pledge the Pink also provides special grants to help with things like patient transportation, childcare / elder care during appointments, home care, insurance co-pays, lymphedema support and medications.

“This will be my third year participating and I feel very blessed and excited to be a part of this event. I am supporting the survivors and remembering those who have lost their battle. I walk in honor of my sister-in-law Heather, and my teammate Jeri, who are both survivors.” said one of the group’s founders, Carolyn Whitehead.

“Being a breast cancer survivor,” explains Jeri Cantwell, “I walk to pay it forward to those in need of screenings and treatments and research to help find a cure.” 

“Why do I walk? Pledge the Pink is a great cause! Walking can be a great way to get the daily activity your body needs to fight off cancer. And the friendships I have formed during our training walks are priceless.” commented Nina Searcy.

Sonya Culbreth says “Motion is Emotion and in this case it’s healing, helping and filling in the gap for people who need mammograms, medical services and outreach the most. It’s unity for survivors. It’s awareness for prevention and hope for tomorrow.” 

Why they walk:

• About 1 in 8 U.S. women will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime.
• An estimated 268,600 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed in women this year. 
• Other than lung cancer, breast cancer death rates are higher than those for any other cancer in women.

For more information on participating or fundraising support, contact Carolyn Whitehead at carolyngw@gmail.com.

 

Submitted by Carolyn Whitehead