I usually reserve this blog to talk about my photography, but today I’m writing about something different. It’s a very important topic that’s especially close to my heart.
My friend Kate has stage four melanoma. She’s 26 years old. Over the last four years, it has spread to various parts of her body; including her heart, liver, back, hip, sacrum, adrenal glands, and – most recently – her brain. Cancer in her sacrum has resulted in a fracture of the bone, forcing her to avoid any high-impact activities, including her absolute passion: running. Kate finds her inability to run the most challenging part of her cancer fight yet.
In September, my friend Steph and I discussed getting a small team together to run the LIVESTRONG half marathon on behalf of Kate. If she can’t run this one, we wanted to run it for her. At the time, we thought Kate’s closest friends and relatives would join us. Little did we know, Team Kate was about to turn into something much bigger than we could have ever anticipated.
To date, we have over 100 registered runners and have raised over TWENTY FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS ($25,000!!!) for LIVESTRONG. It makes me choke up to think about what this means for cancer patients and caregivers nationwide. Chills.
Let me tell you something about Kate: she is a fighter. My relationship with Kate is so important to me. She is truly one of the most genuine, selfless people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing. I would do anything to help her, or provide some relief for this situation. And that’s exactly what I’m trying to do by participating in this half marathon on February 17th.
For a powerful piece about Kate, her fight, and Team Kate’s efforts (including photos from our recent runners brunch), read what fellow runner Sean Maguire had to say on his blog.
We are running as Team Kate to show our support for an incredible woman, cancer fighter, and friend. I appreciate everyone’s support of our team as we make a difference in the battle against cancer, and lift up Kate. So, if you can, I ask that you donate: $5, $10, $100 … every little bit helps. It would mean the world to me and all members of Team Kate. Thank you.
Love,
Katie
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) recently got together for a quick photo shoot! Extra fun part? I got to be in the pictures, too!
