This year, I joined the Komen community and registered for the Susan G. Komen MORE THAN PINK Walk. For me, this is more than a walk—it is deeply personal.
I am a 14-year breast cancer survivor, and throughout this journey, I have learned that survivorship is not a single moment. It is a continuous process of healing, growing, adapting, and sometimes simply finding the strength to keep going. Over the years, I have had to adjust and readjust my crown more times than I can count.
Through it all, my family has been the wind beneath my wings. Their love, prayers, encouragement, sacrifices, and unwavering presence have carried me through some of my most difficult moments. When my crown felt heavy, they helped me bear its weight. When it slipped, they helped me straighten it. When I struggled to recognize my own strength, they reminded me of the queen I have always been. I may be the survivor, but this journey has never been mine alone.
At the very heart of that support was my mother—the original queen and my ultimate crown adjuster. She joined the fight when I was at my lowest and stood with me in the trenches when the weight of my crown felt like more than I could bear—and even during the moments when I questioned whether I was still worthy of wearing it. She spent the final years of her life caring for me, loving me, and helping me find my strength again. When chemotherapy caused me to begin losing my hair, she shaved her own head so I would not have to face that part of the journey alone. That was who she was: selfless, courageous, and extraordinary. Although she is no longer physically beside me, her love continues to lift me, her strength lives within me, and every time I adjust my crown, I carry a piece of hers with me.
That legacy of love is at the heart of Crowned in Pink. We walk to celebrate survivors who continue to adjust their crowns, to encourage those who are still fighting, to honor the families and friends who stand beside them, and to remember those—like my mother—whose crowns now shine from above.
That is the heart behind Crowned in Pink. We walk to celebrate survivors who continue to adjust their crowns, to encourage those who are still fighting, to honor the families and friends who stand beside them, and to remember those whose crowns now shine from above.
I am dedicated to Komen’s mission of ending breast cancer forever, and I need your help. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation today in support of my fundraising efforts.
Your support helps bring us one step closer to a world without breast cancer. The funds raised help advance breakthrough research and provide critical assistance to people facing breast cancer today. Whether someone needs emotional support through Komen’s helpline, financial assistance, or navigation services to help break down barriers to care, Komen is there.
Ending breast cancer will take all of us. Your generosity—no matter the amount—can make a meaningful difference for patients, survivors, and the people who love them.
Will you join my family, my Crowned in Pink team, and me in this fight by making a donation today? Together, we can help every person facing breast cancer feel the strength of an entire community standing beside them—and remind them that even when the journey becomes difficult, they do not have to adjust their crown alone.
