Part One:
Couch Potato In Training
(Go to Part 2) (Go to Part 3)

I'm a walker (walker # 2065) in the Avon 3-Day Breast Cancer Walkathon scheduled July 27 - 29, 2001 from San Jose, CA to San Francisco, CA. I'm a "couch potato" at heart so training for this has been a great undertaking. I started my training regimen in February and was only able to walk 1/4 mile. Now, I'm proud to report that the longest walk I've completed thus far is 14 miles. I'm getting close to my goal of completing a 20 - 23 mile walk prior to the official start of the walkathon. In addition to walking, I'm doing aerobics, strength training & pilates.

In order to participate in the walkathon, I've pledged to raise $1,900.00. I'm happy to report that I've exceeded this amount & have currently raised $9,115.00. My latest goal is to raise $12,000.00 by the pledge deadline of June 29. The key to remember in fund-raising is not to discount any people that you would not be sure would make a donation. I've been pleasantly surprised that quite a few people I have in this category actually made a pledge contribution. Include everyone you know on your pledge letter writing list. You'll be amazed at how many people you actually know. To make my letter stand out, I used pink paper. I bought a ream of the paper & used regular white envelopes. I also used stickers for the first time. I found a pattern that had various fish which had some pink color featured. I've found that this added feature helped my letter stand out in the people's mail. Remember to be creative!!!

I'm sending thank you notes along with a breast cancer lapel pin (item carried by The Thanks Company) to those who've sent in pledge contributions. In my note, I first thank them for the generous contribution and include some information on how my training is progressing. I end the note with again thanking them. I've included the pin because I wanted them to have something tangible to remember about their donation for the Avon 3-Day Breast Cancer Walkathon.

I'm wearing a breast cancer pin everyday as a reminder to me of why I'm training. This is by far the hardest thing I've ever undertaken. If anyone would have told me in January that I would walk 60 miles over three days, I would have laughed hysterically. A "couch potato" walk 60 miles - no way!! If someone were to ask me today, I would say "yes"!!!! It's amazing how a few months of training can change one's outlook.

I'll keep you posted on my progress!!

Take care.

Saralyn Brown

(Go to Part 2) (Go to Part 3)

If you have questions or comments for Saralyn, email them to saralyn@thankscompany.com.