Avon Walk for Breast Cancer
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2011 Avon Walk, Georgetown Lombardi-Capital Breast Care Center
Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Capital Breast Care Center together raised nearly $80,000 last year in support of the 2011 Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in Washington, DC. The walk was held April 28-May 1, culminating in a powerful closing ceremony on the grounds of the Washington Monument.
With its fifth year participating in the walk, the Georgetown Lombardi-Capital Breast Care Center (CBCC) team steadily increased its presence and fundraising power over the years – last year beat out the 2010 record which was just over $63,000. Led by Jeanne Mandelblatt, MD, PhD, founder of the CBCC and team captain for the walk, the exhausted but exhilarated team members completed the two-day, 39-mile walk with smiles on their faces.
"I am honored to have walked with this team of inspirational—and funny—women, each committed to making a difference. We became a family, supporting each other through long training walks and our 40-mile trek," Mandelblatt says. "The breast cancer survivors on the team are an inspiration to all of us. We have already started planning next year’s walk and hope that we can reach out to add to our family."
The CBCC, the only community-based, licensed and accredited mammography facility in the Washington, DC, area, is an initiative of Georgetown Lombardi that provides culturally appropriate breast care and screening for DC-area women — regardless of their ability to pay. The Avon Foundation for Women has been a partner and generous supporter of the CBCC since it opened its doors in 2004 — beginning with an initial gift of $1 million that helped found the center.
"The Avon Foundation for Women has been the single largest supporter of the programs and services in the seven-year history of Capital Breast Care Center," says CBCC Executive Director Beth Beck. "The funding we receive from Avon allows us to continue to provide breast cancer screening, navigation and transportation services to more than 2,000 women each year."
Last year, the Georgetown Lombardi/CBCC team was made up of more than 40 registered walkers, and had nearly 20 supporters gathered at the 13.9 mile marker on Macarthur Avenue to cheer the team on along as it came by—as well as cheerleaders all along the route. The team was joined by multiple survivors, including some who travelled from San Francisco to take part in the event, according to Mandelblatt.
At the closing ceremony, the Avon Foundation for Women presented a check totaling $750,000 to the Georgetown Lombardi/CBCC team. More than half of this— $450,000—went to support CBCC, and $300,000 went to fund research projects led by Peter G. Shields, MD, and Bassem Haddad, MD, both of Georgetown Lombardi. The research seeks to foster early detection of breast cancer through genetic blood testing.
Shields also served as medical director overseeing the Georgetown University Hospital-sponsored medical volunteers, who staffed the medical tents and provided care for walkers in need.
"This year was our best ever in terms of medical issues in that walkers had their safest and healthiest year. The nice thing is that, while we were prepared for disasters, we fortunately ended up having lots of down time. So instead we helped cheer on the walkers," Shields said of last year’s walk.
In total, the ninth annual Avon Walk in DC raised more than $5 million and counting to advance access to care and promote lifesaving breast cancer research. The DC walk, which is the second of nine Avon walks this year, drew more than 2,200 participants from 47 states, including 215 breast cancer survivors, according to the Avon Foundation for Women.
For more information on the walk or how you can get involved, contact Jeanne Mandelblatt.
