On behalf of team Bosom Buddies 2014,
I would like to thank everyone who joined us on our journey towards the Shoppers
Drug Mart’s “Weekend to End Women’s Cancer”. With your tremendous support we raised over $8, 500!! PLUS as a team, we walked a total off 188km!!! More importantly, together we all
brought awareness and funds to the Princess Margaret Cancer Center.
The Weekend to End Women’s Cancer
was quite the experience. On Day One, the ladies and I were up bright and early
getting dressed in our "all-pink everything" attire. Thank you to FaReal Custom Tees
for printing our shirts. Take a closer look at who some of us were walking for.
All participants and volunteers met 7:20am
at the Rogers Center. As a collective we ate breakfast, performed some
stretches (led by Ace, the Blue Jay’s mascot) and listened to some very
inspirational stories from folks whose lives have been affected by Cancer.
Ace <3
Say Hello To The Royale Kitten
The "Toronto Women In Mining"
Get It Ladies!
That Time I Was On The Jumbo Tron!
"Aint Nobody Got Time For Cancer"
"Mighty Mel" and "Ambitious Audrey"
And We're Off!
We then made our way through the
streets of Toronto. Boy did I get a detailed tour of the city. All I remember
was leaving the Rogers Center, blinking two times, and we were at Jane and
Bloor! (DO YOU KNOW HOW FAR THAT IS!?!) That distance alone was confirmation to
me that we are all capable of doing ANYTHING as long as you were willing to do
the work!
The Rain Held Up For Us
The Wonder Women
I photo bombed Team "T-Cell"
There were stations all along the route from supporters <3
Sis & I - Completing 13.9km
The "Double Bubble" Crew
OLD MILL STATION!!!
Channeling Our Inner Ballerina - My Hand Placement Is Horrible Though!! Lol
Organizers did keep us entertained
throughout the time. We had mini cheer stations along the route; some had food,
some had cultural entertainment, and some had DJs! I even spotted
the Energizer Bunny and mayoral candidate Olivia Chow.
"TUTU" Cute!
Selfies!
Hey Chinatown!!!
There was also stations from Ukraine, Latin America, and more! The #CarnivalSpice in me was really happy to see a Junkanoo Bahamian Band and Steel Pannist "On Di Road" too!
After 8 ½ hours our day one walk to
end cancer was complete. What a journey. I can’t really describe the different
pains my body was feeling because I was so overjoyed by the accomplishment.
32km???? and I wasn’t playing mas???? I am still in shock (ha!). Below is a three women who also completed the walk. We were all rewarded with a t-shirt that read "WE DID THIS TOGETHER" and we truly did!! I want to give a HUGE HUGE shout out to my Bosom Buddies team mate Dawnette for completing Day Two of the weekend. Her second walk was 28km! We are all so proud.
Cheers to the next adventure and big
hugs and kisses to Carolyn Van, Sistah Angie, Kay Blair, the Bosom Buddies
2014, My Loving Family & My Awesome Friends <3
One last thing... for the "breast" mortgage rates call the "Mortgage Lady"!! :D
This post is dedicated to all of you
amazing people that have donated to my fundraising initiatives for the Weekend
to End Women’s Cancers. I am touched by the overwhelming support from everyone:
relatives, former co-workers, Carnival Spice crew, friends from high school
& University, Carnival Siblings, clients, and even people that I don’t know! It has been a beautiful process.
With that said I am excited to
announce that I have reached my personal goal of $1250 and so have all my teammates’
a.k.a “The Bosom Buddies”. We will officially be completing a 32km walk THIS Saturday
with thousands of other awesome women! My next individual fundraising mark is
$2000 and this will determine if I am eligible to walk on the Sunday.
I would also like to shout out all
of the awesome women who came out Thursday night for the “Bosom Buddies Dance-Fitness
Fundraiser” in benefit of the Princess Margaret Cancer Center. The one-hour workshop
was held in downtown Toronto at The Citadel dance studio... boy did we have a time!
#SWEATYSELFIE
Sister, Mom, & Me
Hooray!!
Women of all ages and ethnicities came out to donate, sweat
and dance up a storm. Everyone was also quite excited to receive some of my "Carnival
Spice" (HA!).
- As you can see from the clip above, my 20 month year old
nephew Matteo made for a great assistant; he enjoys any opportunity to dance.
The Weekend To End Cancer is in 5 Days which is more than
enough time to make an even bigger impact! If you haven`t had an opportunity to
donate please click HERE !! Whether small or big, your contribution is
GREATLY appreciated.
I will be dedicating my participation in the walk to 3
amazing women:
(1)Carolyn
Van
This young woman is a true
inspiration. We met in the dance world through the performance and training group Army of Sass. At the age of 28 Carolyn was diagnosed with lymphoma cancer this
past March. She has used her strength in social media to
document and share her journey through fighting young adult cancer. PLEASE
PLEASE visit her blog…. It is truly powerful -> http://cvkickingcancersass.com
(2)``Sistah
Angie``
I have known this lady since I
was a little girl.Every time I see her
it is so refreshing! She is so loving, positive, plus she makes THE BEST
lasagna I have EVER eaten… and trust me, I have eaten A LOT of lasagna in my
life time. As she battles the Big C, I ask that you all keep her in your
prayers. She is a true fighter and will be this thing.
(3)Kay
Blair
Kay has been a community
activist for years and has achieved a plethora of accolades for her
contributions. Although I have never met this woman, her work has made a great
impact on the development of my career and I truly appreciate her. Kay, my sister and I thank you for your efforts and we all know you will get through this!
On September 6th
and September 7th 2014 my teammates and I will walk in support of the many
individuals and families affected by cancer. With today being the 2-month mark
I thought it would be great to give a shout out to the Bosom Buddies:
Team Bosom Buddies Are:
Team Captain & Aunty: Audrey Isaacs
Sister & Partner in Crime: Siobhan Bent
Cousin & Fellow Capricorn: Melissa Isaacs
Family Friend:
Dawnette Elvie
Church Sister:
Janet Champagne Myself: Shakera Martin
THE WALK
The Weekend to End Women’s Cancers is an awesome fundraising campaign hosted
by Shoppers
Drug Mart. It consists of a 2-day, 60-kilometre or 1-day 32-kilometre walk
through the neighbourhoods of downtown Toronto. Each walker is expected to
raise a total of $2000 that will benefit Princess Margaret Cancer Centre – a
leader in the fight against all women's cancers.
WHY SHAKERA WHY?
I’ve said it once and
I will say it again, “I Am Shakera Martin & I Want to End
Cancer”. One of my biggest pet peeves with Cancer is
that it strikes at any time in the lives of any one. NO ONE IS SAFE. I have
witnessed way to many families left broken because of this disease. My decision and commitment to complete this journey (fundraising
& walk) is based on love for my fellow sisters, mothers, grandmas,
daughters, nieces, and friends everywhere.
Throwback photo with my sister & mom <3
PUT IN WORK
I truly did not
realize how far 60km was until I began training (ha!). I have been using my friend Google maps to
find locations that are 60km away from my home. This is such a horrible
exercise! It only built up my anxiety. Then I tried to determine how many kilometers
I (unknowingly) walked during Day One and Day Two of Trinidad Carnival – but half
the time in Trinidad I wasn’t sure where I was (lol) – so that exercise did not
help either. How far is 60km ya’ll? Someone give me an idea :p
What I do know
is how much $2000 dollars is… and how challenging it can be to make that amount
of money in allotted time. The Bosom
Buddies have some fundraising events coming up in the next few weeks – for dates
and event details visit CLICK HERE
(1)PRAY: For the
safety of the walkers, organizers, and volunteers apart of The
Weekend to End Women’s Cancers … but more importantly pray for the
families that have been affected by cancer – they need your prayer and love the
most. <3
(2)Please DONATE
to this journey as it’s yours, too. Whatever you can will be appreciated if it’s
coming from your heart.
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