I am a 49 year old wife and mother of two. My husband Denny and I have been married for almost 28 years (I was a child bride). My daughter Jenna is 21 and is starting her senior year at the University of Central Florida. My son Brett is almost 15 and will be a sophomore this fall at St. Petersburg Catholic High School. I also have two, four-legged children – Bo and Daisy who are Shelties. I grew up in Michigan, and moved to Florida three weeks after I got married, for my husband to go to law school. The plan was to move back to Michigan when he was finished. After the first year, we were going back; after the second year, we said if he got a good offer we were going back; after the third year, we said “NFW” (No Way!). I have worked at Raymond James and Associates for 16 years – currently as a Sr. Business Analyst. When I am not dealing with husbands, kids and dogs, I am involved with my church’s Council of Catholic Women where I serve as the Hospitality Chair (aka – bartender).
When I was 17 years old, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. She was only 47 years old and had a radical mastectomy. Back then, you didn’t talk about breast cancer (except in whispers). My mom was a very strong woman, but I saw her frustration as she tried in vain to find fashionable clothing that didn’t have a V-neck or very short sleeves. Her doctors took her entire left chest and arm muscles, leaving deep gaps which she kept covered. My mother was a breast cancer survivor for 9 years – until she became a brain cancer victim (totally unrelated to the breast cancer). In 2005 when Thanks for the Mammories started, Janice tried to get me to walk but I couldn’t make the commitment. When she asked me again to join the 2006 walk, I realized that I was 47 years old – the exact same age as my mother when she was diagnosed. I couldn’t say no! The 2006 walk was one of the most important accomplishments of my life! Aside from the actual walk experience itself, I came away from it with the greatest support group I could ever find. In 2007, family commitments made it impossible for me to devote the time needed for training so I opted to join the support team. I like to think of myself as “Team Mom”. Having been a walker, I can anticipate the needs of my team and we do our best to give them everything they need and more! This gives me a great sense of accomplishment, and I feel like I am doing my part to rid the world of this terrible curse called breast cancer.