A Day of Inspiration and Hope

Today was Portland's 15th Annual Race for the Cure an event to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Foundation. The day started out early for my mom, Isabelle, and me. We woke up early so we could make our way to downtown Portland and find a place to park which was not a problem at all. I had heard there was going to be about 50,000 people participating in the event, so logistics in getting to the event was critical.


Laurie and Isabelle before the Race

By the time we made it to Tom McCall Waterfront Park, there were thousands of people everywhere. We were told to find our Qualcomm PDC team leader near the starting line and she would be holding green balloons. I thought it was going to be impossible to find her in the sea of people.


Starting Line 5k Women Runners

We managed to get to the starting line and waited for the runners to start their race and once they passed, we filled in the void they left. As we were getting ourselves situated behind the start line, I spotted the green balloons and team Qualcomm PDC was able to walk together.


Kristin and daughter Rachel


Team Qualcomm PDC

The walk was very easy and pleasant. The weather was a little cool and cloudy, but rather nice. Isabelle behaved and only fussed for the first part of the walk, then she fell asleep. I pushed the stroller up the two inclines and mom pushed the rest of the time. It was amazing to look down Broadway and all I saw was a sea of humanity infront of me. I turned around and looked behind me and I saw the same thing. When we crossed the finish line, the announcer said "You can walk again if you'd like because people are still at the starting line waiting to start their 5k walk." It took us a little over an hour to walk the 5k which was a nice pace especially since we had a stroller loaded down with a baby and gear.


Looking North on Broadway


Looking South on Broadway

It was truly an amazing event and overwhelming to see so many people get together for one cause. Portland's Race for the Cure is the largest on the west coast and fifth largest Race for the Cure event on the national level. I am glad I participated today and I hope Isabelle and I can make this an annual event. As of today, team Qualcomm PDC has raised $2250.00 which is not bad for a first year team. If you thought it was too late to make a donation, it's not! You have until October 17th to make a donation. So, click on this link: Laurie's Race Page to make a donation. Again a heartfelt thank you to everyone who donated on my behalf.