Day 3: The Finish

Finally the Ford World Headquarters came into view. Unfortunately we could see it from miles away so it seemed to take forever to actually get there (see the tiny little tents in the distance). I have to admit, the finish line was a bit anti-climactic. There were lots of people there, many of whom were crew. I’m not really sure what I expected, but I do know that I was very glad to be done. All of the sudden my feet weren’t quite so tired.

Then a surprise. My sister and her husband came to watch me cross the finish line. I got word from her on Thursday that they would be coming. I was so excited to see them. I searched the crowd for their faces but remembered I hadn’t given very good information about an approximate finish time. Oh well, once we finally connected on the lawn in front of the stage I hobbled my way over to her and wrapped my smelly, red self around her. Yea, I was SO happy to see her. They drove all the way from Allendale on their wedding anniversary just to see me. I must be special. I thought of how we were next generation sisters just like my Aunts Jean and Jill.

The finish was sweet. I was so glad to be done and I was proud of having participated in such an important event. I know that our small contribution, when added to the contributions of all the other participants, equaled 4.5 million dollars that will go toward breast cancer programs and research. Those programs and that research are the very things that I pray will prevent my aunts, their children, their grandchildren, and all of you from ever having to deal with breast cancer again. Thank you!