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Hi! My name is Karen Warmke and I am honored to be the adult Honorary Chair of Janesville’s Relay for Life 2006. Let me tell you a little bit about how I became involved with this event. In December of 2001, I lost one of my best friends to breast cancer after she had been cancer free for 13 years. After months of overwhelming grief, I walked on to my first Janesville RFL in 2002, spending hours writing out luminary bags and walking the track. At that event, I found compassion and hope and the commitment to become pro-active against cancer. I had already lost my grandmother, Daisy to stomach cancer, my Grandma Ruth to ovarian cancer, dear, sweet Uncle Andy to brain cancer and a non-smoking aunt, Wynona, to lung cancer. Watching Wendy battle her cancer, taking her to chemo and radiation treatments, having so many emotion-filled talks and then watching her die affected my life like nothing before. In September of 2002, my dad lost an eye to melanoma, and then quietly feared for a reoccurrence. On Dec. 23rd, 2004 at the oncologist’s office we viewed X-rays and scans of a body filled with cancer. Dad died one month later. In May of 2004, a young boy on my son’s Little League team was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer. We came to be close friends with his family, and I was forever inspired by the courage and spirit of this angel. Montez Zinn died on May 15th, 2005, the day before I went into the hospital for a mastectomy. After a clear mammogram, I found a lump that was diagnosed as Stage II A infiltrating, as well as in situ, carcinoma. I completed my chemotherapy the day of our RFL event last August. On August 24th, 05, my mother died of a heart attack after 65 years of smoking. Three months ago, I was told that Wendy’s 17 year old daughter and one of her sisters had committed suicide, both battling depression after never recovering from Wendy’s death. The rippling effects of cancer continue. On May 3rd, 06, I attended the funeral of Tom Callahan, an incredible man (and former Relay Chair) who had battled cancer harder than anyone I’ve known. After 7 years of unwavering courage and strength, he came home from his friend’s funeral (Don had also died from cancer), and his body and mind just started shutting down. Cancer has touched me and the lives of too many friends and family members, and it is now my life’s passion to fight against it. I was a RFL team captain for two years and have been on the planning committee also for two years. As the chair of the Education and Advocacy for our relay, I have had amazing experiences. I traveled to Washington, D.C. last September to participate in the American Cancer Society Lobby Day, sharing my story with legislatures and other survivors. This fall, I am so honored to be an Ambassador to “Celebration on the Hill, 2006” where over 10,000 cancer survivors, care givers, treatment providers, researchers and volunteers will “relay” on a track around the Reflecting pool in Washington D.C. , sharing stories of hope and getting the message to Congress that we care about cancer and we vote! Education and Advocacy are year round priorities so please stop by our booth at Relay and sign up to become more involved! Thank you to everyone for your commitment to Relay and to wiping out cancer! As an Ambassador for Celebration on the Hill in September of 2006, I would like to share personal stories of how cancer has affected us and our loved ones. I will compile these pages into a scrapbook to show to our government officials in Washington D.C. If you would like to be a part of this special project, please click here for the complete details. |
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This page was created by Anne Marie Reece updated on07/09/2008
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