Now is the Time to Train!
Pink up the Pace 5K is October 1st. this year, which is just around the corner. You can register at https://runsignup.com/Race/FL/StAugustine/PinkUpThePace5kWalkRun and you can take advantage of the rate $$ because everyone knows if you sign up early your registration fee is less! Remember to hit the Donate key add a little extra if you can.
Adults and children 13 and older
Now through August 31st: $35.00
September 1st through 29th: $45.00
Expo and Race Day: $50
Children 6-12 years
Now through August 31st: $15
September 1st through October 1st: $20
Breast Cancer Survivors: $25
Unfortunately, today it is difficult to meet someone who has not been touched by breast cancer and Pink Up the Pace is more than just a race it is friends and family coming together to help and support women with Breast Cancer. The race is now in its 14th year and continues to make an impact and grow. The 2009 inaugural race brought in over 800 participants and raised $20,000. In 2019, there were 2,900 participants and $50,000 raised. All the money raised stays in St. Johns County goes directly towards their mission of assisting the uninsured and underinsured in the early detection of breast cancer. In the last 13 years, they have been able to pay out about $350,000 in breast imaging services to the men and women in need in our county.
Cindy Ortiz Chaconas Story the founder of Pink Up the Pace
I was diagnosed on Wednesday January 7th, 2009 with Stage 2 Breast Cancer poorly differentiated ductal carcinoma. At the time of my diagnosis, I felt like I had gotten on a roller coaster ride that fell off the track taking me in different directions with many loops and turns.
It all started the summer of 2008 when I noticed a lump on my right breast. My physician diagnosed the lump as a cyst and recommended I keep an eye on it. After several months, the cyst increased in size and I was then referred to a breast surgeon.
Aside from the lump, I felt fine. I had just finished running the inaugural San Antonio Rock-n-Roll marathon in November. Who would have thought that such a thing could happen to me at the age of 28?
January 7th, I had my lumpectomy and axillary node dissection. I had 16 doses of chemotherapy. Like many cancer patients I lost my hair, eyelashes and most of my eyebrows. I underwent 33 treatments of radiation which ended in September 2009.
How did I survive the 9 months of 2009? Aside from family, friends and work, it was Cancer survivors that have gave me the courage to overcome that chapter in my life. As I sat in the chair receiving chemo, I wanted to give up and let the disease take its course. However, as I looked around at all the other cancer patients of all different age groups enduring similar treatments, I realized that I was not alone in this journey. In the process, I met and joined a sisterhood of fighters. It is a bond that cannot be explained and once the connection has been made you are locked in it for life. That is how I met Amy Kaelin, a survivor and friend, who can share my feelings, emotions and thoughts because unfortunately she has been there.
Throughout my journey I felt numb to the whole experience. I sometimes felt it was a dream until I look back at pictures and notice all the physical changes that I had to endure. I am not immortal anymore and I cannot keep running from myself. It’s okay to listen to your thoughts, be scared, sad and lost. Life is not always what you have hoped or expected, but you are here. No matter what is thrown your way, you always have an option to keep pushing and trying because it can always be worse.
When I look at myself now, I am reminded that I am not who I once was nor do I know who I will be in the future. For now I am a women, a runner, a wife, a mother and a breast cancer survivor trying to make a difference. As a result, Pink Up The Pace was established.
I want to educate and bring awareness to the community about early detection. As a physical therapist, I learned to always approach things conservatively. So with that in mind, I thought that if one is hands-on and familiar with their body, people can hopefully catch lumps early. Three weeks after my diagnosis, my mother was also diagnosed with breast cancer. The reason she was diagnosed is because after my surgery she decided to be proactive about the lump she had also felt a couple of months prior but had not been too concerned about.
I also want PUTP to help individuals in financial need because one of the main reasons my mom did not actively question her lump initially was because she did not have health insurance. Breast cancer is the second most frequently diagnosed cancer in women (skin cancer is number one) and the second leading cause of cancer death. I decided to turn an unfortunate personal situation into a positive one and make a difference.
No one should ever delay early detection because of financial reasons. We are here to help.
Currently Pink Up the Pace helps to fund the following services to those in financial need at the following imaging centers in St. Augustine; Screening Mammograms, Diagnostic Mammograms, Ultrasounds, MRI and Biopsy.
Check out their website at https://www.pinkupthepace.com/eligibility/
Cindy Treaster
Are you ready to acheive your goals?
For more information contact Cindy Treaster 904-501-5759 Realwomenlift@aol.com or Tracy Robinson, at 757-652-7572 email puravidayogini@gmail.com.
Meet our Trainers at Real Women Lift Personal Fitness Training Studio, which is PRIVATE WOMENS ONLY STUDIO, Cindy Treaster and Tracy Robinson, Certified Personal Fitness Trainer, they will guide and motivate you with their knowledge of Strength, Endurance, Flexibility and Nutrition.
Tracy Robinson
