I think you'll be pleased to know that I survived my whirlwind weekend, which was full of a mixture of very fun and moving events: Krista & Michael's church choir's performance of Requiem was beautiful. The pre-party dinner Layla made for me on Saturday was delicious and Melissa B.'s new condo looked amazing for her condowarming party. Michelle's Sunday afternoon shower was a lot of fun (her shower game was actually entertaining...a rare feat!). And Alison made another delicious dinner for our Mad Men viewing (the show keeps getting better and better!) last night. However, the real highlight of the weekend for me were the activities I participated in as part of the GCF's Inaugural Gyncological Cancer Awareness Movement Weekend.
I spent most of Saturday at an ovarian cancer survivors' workshop at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in D.C. (love the Mandarin and hope I get to eat at its four-star restaurant, Cityzen, someday soon!). During the day, I heard lectures from some of the leading gynecologic oncologists in the country(including Dr. Annette Bicher who is one of Dr. E's partners), had the opportunity to meet many interesting survivors (and was invited to join a local "Steel Magnolias" lunch group; they're excited about having a "young one" in the group), and had great conversations with representatives of all of the leading gynecologic/ovarian cancer advocacy groups to learn more about various ways in which I can get involved in awareness building and fundraising efforts. The lectures I heard were so informative; I learned about everything from the first documented successful ovarian tumor removal (it occurred on a farmhouse kitchen table in 1809; the tumor weighed 22 lbs.) to management of recurrant ovarian cancer to candidate agents for ovarian cancer prevention, which include Omega-3 fatty acids (duh!) and vitamin D (turns out my afternoons by my parent's pool this summer were better for me than I knew at the time!). What struck me most about the day was how many of the doctors got choked up at one point or another during their presentations. These people are dedicated to their work and might even hate this stupid cancer more than I do. It was a really powerful day and I'm so thankful that the GCF used part of its funds to produce it for all of us.
The conclusion of the GCF's Movement weekend were its half-marathon, 5K and 1K races on Sunday morning, which started at Freedom Plaza. My friends and I all completed the 5K and I was pleased to run the last mile of the race, which is the first time I've run outside in just about a year. Thanks to Alison, Kristin, Melissa R., Sarah, Molly, Erin, and Michelle for joining me! It was fun and it meant a lot to me to cross the finish line just six weeks after finishing my treatment. Below are some shots from the race. Enjoy!
The group (L to R): Molly, Kristin, Michelle, me, Melissa R., Sarah, Erin, and Alison. Not pictured: My friend Stephanie, who ran the half-marathon in my honor. Thanks Steph! 
Sunrise over the U.S. Capitol.
Love this team's t-shirt!
A shot of the 5K racers just before the start. Survivors were given yellow t-shirts to wear.
Me!
Thanks!
Love these gals' hats: "Rock the Speculum"
Love this team's shirt, too. I'll have to figure out what my team is going to wear for future races.
Kristin, Alison, and Michelle approaching the finish line.
There they are waving to me. Sorry...very out of focus.
Stephanie's husband, Brian, and daughter, Dylan, as they waited for her to finish the two hour + half-marathon. Go Steph!
We enjoyed a post-race breakfast back in Alexandria at our favorite greasy spoon breakfast place, Table Talk.
Sarah and Erin.
No comments:
Post a Comment