Dear Reader:

After Tommy and I walked the Race for the Cure together in 2009…the rest of the family mentioned they would be interested in participating too….including Doodle, Lassie, and Carrie. So the picture above is the very first team photo taken. That year our team name was the Dingle Dilly Dallies because we waited until the last moment to register and make the race.

Tommy and I spent the night in Walsh’s apartment on Daniel Island…he and Mollie (who he was dating at the time) were in a friend’s wedding out of town….When we got there…Mollie and Walsh had decorated the kitchen and had pink balloons and a delicious apple pie waiting for us. The next morning we met Doodle and Lassie for the Survivor’s Ceremony and then John, Mandy, Carrie and eight month old Eva Cate joined the team for our first official walk.

Little did we know then that this little gathering would grow and grow and we would continue walking it together for eight more years. Love does grow exponentially.

This year Legally Pink will not be participating as a family/friends team. Two obstacles arose that made me stop and wonder if these were the signs that last year’s great ‘over the top’ fundraiser and tent winner status was perhaps the best way to go out.

This year, instead of the race being held around the middle of October  (Breast Cancer Month) it is being held later this month…Saturday, September 22. The venue has changed to North Charleston instead of Daniel Island. (We had Daniel Island covered as to meeting times, places,  everyone knew where and when to meet before the race.

Changing locations would definitely be more difficult for everyone and not as conveniently located in the Charleston area.  But the main thing is…that particular Saturday is, also, Jakie’s birthday/ celebration party day and his family/friends will be there for his birthday. (That means us!)

I thought about it for a long time…and as much as I have loved participating in this event…(mainly because it is the one time, annually, our family gathers to help others who need our help) there comes a moment when one just knows that it is time to change paths. The family has given of their time, their finances, and their willingness to get up early with little ones, dressed in pink, costumes, and come to the event for their Boo Boo. I appreciate and cherish all of you, dear family, for it. *And I don’t know what Doodle and I would have done without Lassie driving early each Saturday Race Day morning….really early!!! We owe you a lot Lassie!

Quite honestly…the fund-raising always made me feel a little uncomfortable…I don’t mind giving…just asking people to give. And goodness gracious…you blog readers have given and given and given. And I can’t thank you enough for your amazing generosity! It has brought tears to my eyes each and every year.

As you are reading this today…I have already talked or written to the family in groups/individuals over the past few weeks and explained the situation to them…everyone certainly understands- it was a  tough decision. Now it is others’ turns…I want to be available to participate in events my children, or other members of the family might be interested in…or perhaps helping a friend with another health crisis fund-raiser.

With all that said, however, I will have to admit that when I went back to collect photos from 2010 to 2017 I was having a hard time swallowing…looking at the different team formations with each grandchild entering year after year. Little Eloise will be the only one not to stroll with Boo Boo on race day…so we will have to make her an honorary participant. She would have… if we had.

2010: Team: The Dingle Dallies

Inside the baby carriage was an excited, eight-month-old, cute Eva Cate…little did she know she would do this eight more times with her Boo Boo.

The original team members were Doodle, Lassie, Carrie, John, Mandy, Tommy, Eva Cate and myself.

2011: Team: Chapel of Hope Stories

*This was the year Mollie held a gathering at her place on James Island for the after race celebration…so much fun!

2012: Chapel of Hope Stories

2013: Team: Boo Boo Owie  (The year we put band aids all over us with the pink ribbon on them)

Baby Rutledge  joined us for the first time…he was about six months old and Kaitlyn came into our lives also (who loved to keep Rutledge)….now two grandchildren were involved in the Race for the Cure and a future wife for Tommy! It was a good year. Rutledge was already sharing secrets with Eva Cate…I think he was saying “Psst! Don’t tell anyone but Tommy loves Kaitlyn.” (Babies are very wise in that way!)

2014: Team: Legally Pink

(This is the year we finally settled on our team name-for the next four years…celebrating Tommy and Kaitlyn’s ‘Passing of the Bar!‘ Two lawyers were on the team now! Also my nephew Lee came to join in the fun!

Back home little Jakie, mom, and dad were waiting for the racers to return…Jakie was three weeks old. And Mollie’s birthday!

2015: Team: Legally Pink

This was the year Anne and Brookie joined us….it added so much fun to the festivities! Jakie  joined us for his first official ‘stroller for the cure’ ride- asleep but accounted for!’  Lachlan made his debut chewing on his pink bow tie!

Brooke and Anne discovered that the hardest part was getting up so early for the race..but coffee helps!

Another Birthday for Mollie following the Race for the Cure!

2016: Team: Legally Pink

Even though we were only 13 strong…with just all the family…we placed twelfth that year in the fund-raising…all due to you loyal readers. We were moving up in the ranks…competing against companies and larger organizations…but getting the job done! I now had eight beads!

Doodle and Lassie showed the early morning crowd just how to hoola-hoop! Way to go girls!

We had lost Rudy (Kaitlyn’s oldest dog) to cancer so Tommy wore his collar around his sleeve and a special t-shirt underneath.

This was also the year for superheroes! The whole family!

Brenda, Harriett, and I even made the newspaper cover in 2016!

2017: Team: Legally Pink

Last year it happened! Legally Pink placed fourth overall in fund-raising making us eligible for our own private tent. What a thrill and it was all due to you loyal blog readers and your generous hearts of giving…we did the best we had ever done!

Looking back on it…I am not surprised that Mike, Honey, and their daughter, Tarshie, were there to participate in our last family/friend team Race for the Cure! A perfect ending with the most giving couple I know. Atticus and Pip made their debut last year also.

In another sense we had come full circle…the first year (2010) Tommy and I had spent the night at Walsh’s condo on Daniel Island…it was decorated with pink balloons, streamers and an apple pie. Last year Doodle, Lassie and I spent the night there…it was vacant but enough furniture to make it work. And Walsh had left pink roses  and some muffins. It had started and ended in Walsh’s condo.

I honestly don’t know where new beginnings will lead any or all of us…to participate in other events perhaps or as individual participants but not necessarily fund-raisers…the path is unclear but wherever it leads us…nothing can ever take the memories away of the Dingle Dilly Dallies, or Chapel of Hope Stories or Boo Boo Owies or Legally Pink. No matter the name the importance was in the family/friends gathering together for a good cause.

A special shout-out to Captain Tommy Dingle who “captained” our team year after year… explaining computer glitches (concerning the fund-raising) for me year after year. (Thanks for your patience, time, and support Tommy!)

*Another shout-out to John and Mandy who graciously played host to the after race/Mollie’s birthday dual celebration each year for many years! It made the event so much more special with a chance to gather, eat, laugh, and remember the cause.

A quick flash-back over all the years’ teams….thanks Kaitlyn for making this collage as a memoir for everyone. Race for the Cure

So until tomorrow…I am more blessed than any woman deserves to be and it is all because of you…my family and friends. What a sacrifice you made for eight years to support me in my journey, along with my fellow “little c” colleagues. You gave me a memory I will never forget. I love you.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh