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Weekend of walking to end breast cancer

Three women will be walking in Calgary for a cure for breast cancer on July 26 and 27. Amanda Hart and Jessie Dodds, from Ponoka, along with their friend Shannon Hymers, will be participating in the Weekend to End Breast Cancer.
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Shannon Hymers

By Eraina Hooyer

Staff Reporter

Three women will be walking in Calgary for a cure for breast cancer on July 26 and 27. Amanda Hart and Jessie Dodds, from Ponoka, along with their friend Shannon Hymers, will be participating in the Weekend to End Breast Cancer.

The walk will be 60 kms and will begin at the Saddledome and the group will be resting overnight at the Currie Barracks. The next day they will start up again and walk back a different route and end back at the Saddledome.

This is the first year the three are participating in the walk and Hart says that they are looking forward to it and have already been preparing for the journey.

For Hart, the walk is more personal as her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer ten years ago and passed away from pancreatic cancer that has been shown it is linked to breast cancer.

“It’s to raise awareness,” said Hart, “It never hurts to have more awareness on this and it’s important to work for a cure.”

Each person walking is set to raise $2,000 and these three women have worked to reach their goal with donations and by working one of the beer tents during Tough Enough to Wear Pink Day at the Ponoka Stampede. In one day they made $600 on tips that were donated to the walk.

The money that is raised will go to the Alberta Cancer Foundation and part of the funds will be used to purchase a fully-equipped mobile screening unit. Hart believes that this purchase will provide a major benefit to many women.

“Some women don’t always have the access to this,” she said. “Early detection is so important and this will help to reach more women.”

Hart, Dodds and Hymers have been training with a training guide provided by the organization and Hart says that if they begin to become exhausted they hope that the large group will keep them motivated.

“It will help that we will be walking with a big crowd of people,” she said. “I think it will give us enough adrenalin during the walk and will help pull us through.

In addition to increasing awareness and funds, Hart is excited about completing the walk and reaching her personal goal.

“I’m looking forward to finishing,” she said. “I’ve been told that when you come back into the Saddledome there are so many people waiting and cheering for you. It will also be fun camping out at the barracks.”

Hart encourages anyone who wants to volunteer or participate in the walk to contact 403-280-WALK (9255) or visit www.endcancer.ca for more information.