Anniversaries

Today, September 20th is Mike and I's 3rd wedding Anniversary! Its amazing how time flies, as it seems like we should only be celebrating our first anniversary! 

Today is a happy day for us, and a day to celebrate! However, there is another anniversary I look forward to celebrating soon, which is the end of cancer. Last week, I was asked if I would participate in the Opening Ceremonies of the Atlanta 3-Day next month and carry a Future Flag! The flag I was asked to carry is Anniversaries! This flag symbolizes future anniversaries in the world without breast cancer and our determination that there will be a cure for breast cancer in our lifetime. If I was asked to carry any flag, I would have accepted it without hesitation, but I don't think I could have been chosen for a more perfect one. Look for me this year, because I'll be on stage proudly carrying the Anniversary flag!

2010 Opening Ceremonies

All in the Details

If you've never participated in the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure you don't really know what to expect when it comes to the 3 Day camp. For me, it was the sea of pink tents and shower trucks (well stocked with HOT water) that surprised me the most.

One detail that I hadn't really thought about much before my first event (Atlanta 2008) was tent decorations. I had so much to think about like planning for poor weather and traveling from Arkansas for the walk that I didn't really think much about decorating until the last minute.

Why Decorate?
There are a few reasons to consider decorating your tent. One, there is a prize for the best decorations. Second, its a fun way to represent your team at camp. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, it will help you find your tent in a sea of identical tents. If you uniquely decorate your tent it will greatly lessen your chance of returning to the wrong tent after a 2 am bathroom break. Your startled tent neighbors will thank you.

How to Decorate
When it comes to decorate your tent, the sky really is the limit. Something as little and as simple as attaching a glow stick or as big and complex as an over-sized stuffed bra will do the job. Start thinking now and be creative! maybe you'll win something. Just remember, you have to pack your supplies into your gear bag taking care to stay under your weight limit.

Examples
In 2008, I asked my mom to help us with decorations. My request was for it to have something reflective on it (to make it easier to be seen with our flashlight) and to use Florida State colors because Crystal is a big fan. This is what she made us!





(a far away shot...and yes I know I look grumpy, this was after 40 miles and I was in a bit of pain). Here is an up close shot.





She used her hands as tracers and wrote on them "the journey is always shorter with friends by your side". I can't agree more!




Fast forward two years. For the 2010 3 Day I decided to make the decorations myself. We had 4 people on our team so I needed to make decorations for two tents. I decided to elaborate on our team name "My Racky Freedom". I found some camouflage fabric and added some pink and reflective touches to it. There was no mistaking who the occupants of these tents were!

The last example I have for you comes from the 2010 Twin Cities 3 Day. My Little Rock walking buddy traveled to that walk to participate with her mom and a family friend. She's very crafty and was able to create this awesome decoration. I think it speaks for itself. Erin is a military spouse and is now living in Germany and I miss them very much! Love you guys!

Some things to remember about decorating: have fun with it! Pack light and don't stress too much about it. And remember that duct tape and clothes pins are your friend (although that rule definitely applies to more at the 3 Day than just decorating).

Have any decorating questions? Comment below, I'd be happy to help!
I hope you are having a great summer!

2010 Follow-Up

Its that time, time to get the fundraising letter out! As I was looking through my email, I noticed that I have yet to send one out for the 2011 walk. I signed up in November, what have I been doing? When I write my fundraising email, I use one of the examples in the participant center and make it my own, by adding my story, a little extra color and pictures. I try to make it stand out as much as possible, since this is my main source of fundraising. 

A quick fundraising tip I heard last night at a Get Started Meeting; this walker mails out letters to her friends and family. She includes an addressed return envelope with a stamp. Included with her letter is a pink tea bag with a saying attached something like: Take a moment, have a cup of tea and think about breast cancer and what we are doing to end it. She got my attention!

I might be doing this in reverse order, but while I am working on my 2011 fundraising letter (which I will post!), I found my re-cap/thank you email from the 2010 walk. Reading this brought back so many great memories from last year and really got me excited for 2011 and to be walking with a couple newbies!

Friends, Family, my wonderful Supporters,

I am still in shock that the 3-day walk was just one month ago. Our fundraising was a great success.  I raised over $2,600, and my team raised over $11,000 for the cure!  A big thank you goes to all of you, because YOU made this happen!

I bet some of you are wondering how the walk went. We started our journey at Lake Lainer Islands, with the Halloween lights turned on just for us.  All of the employees of Lake Lainer even cheered us on while wearing pink shirts! We walked all day, and around mile 15, I had a surprise:

Our families, my Grandfather, and my Great Aunt came by to cheer us on!  It was a great boost to get us all to the end of our 24 mile first day!

On Saturday morning, we woke up to chilly temperatures, but the cold didn't stop us.  If we weren't campers before the walk, we became campers that weekend.  We had pink tents to sleep in, and there is nothing like sleeping in a pink tent to change your outlook on camping!  We walked all over north Gwinnett, and I had another surprise motivator.

 

Anne was a great supporter for us all, and kept up with us all day. It seemed like every stop, we had Anne was there.  It was especially nice, because the temperatures were climbing.  I didn't think that we'd be walking in 80 degree weather, but we did, and with these temperatures came blisters.  By the end of day 2 we all felt great, but physically we were slowing down.

On Day 3 we had a great tour of Atlanta with amazing supporters all along the way!  Early on, I was honored to walk with a man, Frank, who was walking for his mother in law and his wife.  Frank's mother in law lost her battle with breast cancer a year before.  Frank, didn't exactly know what he was getting into when he signed up for the walk, but he was amazed by the power of pink.  While we were walking, he told me that he'd already signed up for the 2011 walk! Can't wait to see him again next year!

I have to say, I had several blisters, and on day 3, there were a couple points where I didn't think I would make it. Several times, I looked at my pack and thought of all the wonderful women I was walking in honor and memory of and pressed on.  When we rounded the corner from the capital and saw Turner Field, each of us were greeted by our family members who walked the final mile.  We were walking so fast that some people were having trouble keeping up with our pace! Right before we walked into Turner Field, one of the wonderful women that we were walking for stood there with flowers for all four of us!

Because of your generosity, the 2,400 Atlanta walkers raised 6.1 million dollars for the CURE! Overall, in 2010, Susan G. Komen for the Cure raised over 76 million dollars. Again, this is all because of each of YOU!

I hope that you will all support me again in 2011. Every step gets us closer to the CURE! Thanks again for your support, It means more than you will ever know!

Love,
Crystal Canady Elster