Date: 2012-06-20
To: Why I hike for the National Brain Tumor Society
Miles today: 0.0

why I hike...I have a number of friends who are beginning to believe I might be a dangerous person to know¢¦ and I can understand why. In the last 5 years I have watched while 6 (yes SIX) friends have battled brain tumors. These friends all have different types of tumors and they didn¢t all grew up in the same area drinking the same water. After the 4th friend was diagnosed I knew I needed to do something. So I decided to make the switch from breast cancer fundraising, which I had been doing since 2000, to brain tumors. I joke with all my friends in the breast cancer fundraising world ¢I figure I can live without a boob but not without a brain!¢ Maybe it¢s is the shear number of friends who are dealing with this or maybe it¢s the fact brain tumors can affect anyone at any age, but no matter what the reason I knew I needed to do something to help the cause. So here I am walking the Boston Brain Tumor walk for the second year, with my good friend Stephanie (the most recently added to the list of friends who has battled), but I¢m not stopping there. I think I have walked 5 or 6 of the Brain Tumor Walks (originally called Angel Adventure) in Phoenix and an even bigger ¢event¢ (which is where my team name comes from) I am walking from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian Trail to raise awareness and funds for the National Brain Tumor Society.Originally at the age of 14 I decided the summer I was 16 would be the year I would walk the Appalachian Trail, however my mom had other ideas about that plan¢¦ and in time I forgot about the goal. But have you ever noticed how those plans you make at the age of 14 are never really forgotten? Well of course eventually this dream resurfaced and in the early 2000¢s I started to plan for a 2005 thru hike, which is defined as walking the complete trail from Georgia to Maine in one season. But you know how life rarely goes according to our plans¢¦ and sometimes that couldn¢t make for a better outcome. In 2005 I began walking in Georgia, and although I had wanted to do my hike as a fundraiser of some sort I wasn¢t certain of the cause I wanted to benefit and in the end decided I would just hike and not fundraise. As I began to walk in early April I knew on that first day I shouldn¢t be hiking that year. It wasn¢t that I didn¢t think I could make the whole hike, I just knew it wasn¢t the right time. Little did I know then, the cause I would hike for would become abundantly clear in just less than 2 years. While in school to become a massage therapist I met two wonderful women who both have been battling brain tumors for years, and at first my only thought was ¢how sad¢. Then in the fall, one of my closest childhood friends called to tell me her mom had been diagnosed with a brain tumor and was scheduled for surgery. About 8 months later a close friend who I had worked with for years and remained good friends with called to tell me she was scheduled for brain surgery to remove a tumor as well. Well, this was ¢the tumor that tipped the scale¢ so to speak. And I knew what my new cause would be. Since that moment, I have been, at times, utterly shocked at the number of friends who have told me stories of family members and friends who are battling brain tumors as well. By the following fall I had added another friend who was nursing her husband after two brain surgeries, again due to brain tumors. In less than 18 months I found I was visiting Barrow¢s Neurological Hospital in Phoenix all too often. Then just last year I saw another friend was also walking the Brain Tumor Walk (this time in Boston ¢ her home city) and wasn¢t sure why¢¦ after researching her Facebook page, I realized she too needed to be added to my list of reasons I fundraise for the National Brain Tumor Society.I decided in 2009 I would again make the journey from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian Trail but this time it was to be hiked as a fundraiser for the National Brain Tumor Foundation (now Society). And although I didn¢t raise very much money I was happy to be doing some good. Unfortunately, due to injuries and finally being diagnosed with Lyme disease I was forced to make the decision to get off the trail after hiking almost 1100 miles, so I could work on regaining my health again. And although it was a long process to return to health, I have never given up the dream of completing the trail. In 2011 I was able to hike just over 200 miles but I still have about 900 miles to go, which brings us to today.On June 25th I am starting my journey again heading north on the Appalachian Trail. I will begin walking at the Pennsylvania New Jersey state line and hope to complete the last 900 miles of the trail by mid September and be back in Boston in time to walk with Stephanie for the Brain Tumor Walk in Boston.Like I said earlier, many of my friend joke that I am a dangerous person to know¢¦ but at least I am doing what I can to help! I feel so very blessed to have such wonderful friends, and even more blessed that all 6 of them are going against the statistics by surviving. And I am going to do all I can so they continue to survive. I know this has been a long read¢¦ as it has been a long struggle for my friends. Would you please consider helping the National Brain Tumor Society in the battle on brain tumors? Thanks!Angela ¢Phoenix Rising¢ CoatesI know this is a long link to my fundraising page, but it will take you right to my donation page.https://secure2.convio.net/bts/site/Donation2?idb=253515560&df_id=2831&2831.donation=form1&FR_ID=1828&PROXY_ID=1639472&PROXY_TYPE=20&JServSessionIdr004=v9e3lb37b2.app209a