Its Time for a new Challenge!

Are you guys ready for a new challenge? Join me as I train for the Baltimore 1/2 Marathon in October. As usual, I'm fundraising for TNT so that we continue to raise money for LLS and the goal to cure blood cancers by 2015!

This season I'm using runkeeper to keep track of my walks. I will see if I can figure out how to post some of the information posted. But in the meantime, you can always check my Facebook page. Today for instance I did 1.05 miles at an 18.25 min per mile pace. Thanks a lot Tina for walking with me!

Here's an excerpt of the letter I sent out. I hope it helps you understand why I do this:

In 2010 I decided to push a little harder, I signed up to hike in Yosemite National Park. At that time, my dad, one of my biggest cheerleaders was still here to cheer me on, even as his own strength was failing. He loved hearing about my hikes and even sat with me to pick out the actual hike length and difficulty I would do on June 19^th. I called him when I finished the Panorama Trail, sharing my victory with him. He was happy for me and we made a plan to look at pictures when I came home. But that very day, my dad lost his fight with the cancer that had been a part of his life, our lives, for the past 6 years.

I will admit that my heart was broken and I was ready to make that experience my last one. But I could hear my dad telling me not to quit when we are so close. To remember that the drugs and treatments that the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society helped to bring to all of those suffering from blood cancers were the same that helped him survive for nearly 6 years with lung cancer instead of the months that others had after diagnosis.

My dad raised me to be a lot of things, but a quitter isn’t one of them. So with that in mind, I have decided to charge forth again, this time by participating in the Baltimore Half Marathon. I chose this race, because this was the only one that my dad ever got to see me participate in. He took me to the starting line and waited with me and he met me at the finish line – and even gave me a hug despite how sweaty and smelly I was! J

And you know what? The work is NOT DONE! And we need to get to it. Why do I care you ask? Well because there are more people out there being diagnosed with blood and other cancers and they NEED OUR HELP to find a cure. I want to help families have a happy ending, to be able watch and support their loved ones as doctors work to provide them with a CURE! My dad may have lost his battle, but there are other battles to be won. A friend of mine recently told me her brother was diagnosed with myeloma, a cancer that begins in the bone marrow. I was privileged to be able to tell her about LLS and the services they provide because PEOPLE LIKE YOU made donations to TNT to find a cure. My dad would be proud!

Although I’ve done this race before, I will be working on improving my time. The training will be rigorous, but it is worth it if I can do something to help stem the tide of this disease. I am turning to you all, family, friends, and acquaintances, once again to ask that you consider taking up the fight with me in 2011.

Check out my website to donate: http://pages.teamintraining.org/md/balt11/twatkin6sl

Thanks so much for your contribution to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society!