WEST LIBERTY, W.Va., Sept. 28, 2015 — West Liberty University employee Mary Ann Edwards will soon complete her ninth “Susan G. Komen 3-Day” fundraiser walk, sponsored by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation for breast cancer awareness.
Edwards, who is executive secretary in the president’s office, will leave on Thursday, Oct. 1 and fly to Philadelphia, where she’s joining her sister, Amy, to take part in the walk once again. She’s qualified to have her airfare paid by a donor due to her fundraising efforts for the second time, making the trip even more meaningful.
WLU Campus Police supported her efforts with a table of prizes, offered to employees for the price of a prize ticket. The table was prepared and monitored by Capt. Thomas Hostutler. The table of prizes raised an additional $500 for Edwards’ walk this fall.
“I’m grateful for all the support from West Liberty University employees and all my donors, and I especially want to thank Tom for donating and refilling the products,” Edwards said.
She got started on the mammoth walking effort when she was approached by her friend, Elizabeth, who lives near her in Bethany, W.Va. Her friend suggested they join the 60-mile, three-day walk in 2007.
“At that time our team was three people and none of us had ever done the walk before. Elizabeth had lost her best friend to breast cancer, and my friend Mary Kay Gambino, who was a survivor at the time, joined us. Unfortunately, Mary Kay lost her battle three years ago when the cancer came back.” Gambino was from nearby, Cokeburg, Pa.
“We wanted to do the whole experience, which is walk all day and camp for the weekend. You walk approximately 20 miles each day, use port-a-johns all weekend, and shower in very tiny shower stalls in a tractor-trailer. After sharing a 6 x 6 foot nylon tent you can imagine how you feel in the morning when it’s time to walk again,” Edwards explained.
“I did every mile of training they recommended (about 600 total miles of training over three months), but at the end of my last day of my first 3-Day I cried the entire last mile or so, I felt that bad. I had blisters on blisters and felt like someone had beat my feet with a ball bat. I figured I’d never do this again,” she said.
But she did do it again — and again for nine years!
“We don’t do the camping anymore, but this is now my ninth year to walk and my sister Amy has walked it with me for eight years. You’re required to raise $2,300 to participate and I’m proud to say, with the help of some very generous friends, co-workers and neighbors, I’ve raised $31,204.42 in my first eight years of walking! I know some pretty awesome people!” she added. Amy lives in nearby Glen Mills, Pa.
Where does this competitive walker train? She walks the hills and ridges of Wellsburg, where she resides, often in the wee hours of the morning, prior to reporting for work at 8 a.m.
“I feel good, feel like I’m ready,” she said today, just four days out from the start of her huge effort. This year alone she’s raised $3,500, bringing her overall dollars raised close to $35,000.
The number of walkers over the years has ranged from 1,200 to 3,100 participants, she said. Though there are no prizes for time, Edwards and her sister are usually one of the first ones to finish everyday. Which is a good thing since they usually have family functions like a volleyball game for her niece on Friday and a football game for her nephew at University of Delaware on Saturday to attend.
Friday’s start time is at 6:30 a.m., and they expect to finish around 1:30 p.m. that day. Saturday and Sunday starts are around 7 a.m. Edwards said there are plenty of pit stops along the way for snacks and a mandatory lunch stop around noon. The 3-Day ends with an official closing ceremony to celebrate the effort.
The walk is held in seven regions across the nation including: Atlanta, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Michigan, Philadelphia, San Diego, Seattle and Twin Cities. For more information or to donate to her cause, visit www.the3day.org and click on her name.
Edwards expects to be back at her desk in the president’s office in historic Shaw Hall on Monday, Oct. 5. Hopefully, she’ll find the chance to sit a while — refreshing!