Tell me a little bit about yourself! Major, hometown, hobbies?
Year: Sophomore
Major: Film and Media, minor in marketing and minor in audio technology
Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA
Hobbies: I write music, sing and play the piano.
How did you get involved with breast cancer related things?
My first race was on May 14, 2006. It was Mother’s Day, my mom and I decided to run Susan G Komen’s 5k Race for the Cure, in remembrance of her mother, grandmother and her great grandmother. I’ve ran the same 5k with her every year since.
What was your inspiration?
Two months after my first race my mom was diagnosed and three months later she had a double mastectomy. After her studying our family history her oncologist determined that our family has to have an undiscovered gene. Scientists and doctors currently only know about two breast cancer genes BRCA 1 and 2. Thanks to their discovery countless woman have beaten their cancer. My family can’t be the only one with an undiscovered gene and since I started running I’ve wanted to help genealogists find the genes they haven’t.
What is it that you are doing to help support women with breast cancer?
This year rather than running the same 5k I decided to run a half marathon. The Susan G Komen sponsored me for the race in return for my fundraising efforts. I ran the half marathon on September 14th. So far I’ve raised $1,111 and I have until December 30th to reach my $2,000 goal.
Why did you decide to make this webpage?
Anyone who has met my mom knows I might be one of the luckiest people alive. Strong, independent, smart and always welcoming to new people and ideas, I couldn’t have asked for a better role model. Her life, drive and success the past 7 years motivates me every day. This summer she found a benign lump about an inch below her incision scar. The thought of losing her or seeing her go through it all over again destroyed me. I felt like I had to do something. I had to help.