GRACE

Growing up, I witnessed first my paternal grandmother, and then my mother, dealing with diagnoses of breast cancer; so, I had always expected that I would have to confront this diagnosis in my future. I met that future in January 2009, a few months after my 60th birthday. A routine mammogram revealed a suspicious spot on my right breast. After an ultrasound and a needle biopsy, my doctor concluded that I had Stage 1, ductal carcinoma. In early February of 2009, I underwent a lumpectomy followed by 5 weeks of radiation. What great relief I felt as I rang that bell at the conclusion of my radiation treatments!

Breast cancer was a real wake-up call for me. I knew that something in my body must have been amiss if cancer could take hold and grow. I began reading about health and nutrition and taking little steps toward improving all aspects of my health and well-being. Part of that awakening included a desire to improve my overall fitness. While I had never considered myself to be an athlete, I had spent summers in my childhood swimming at the outdoor pool in our community. In college, I joined a synchronized swimming club and continued in that sport after college, first with a performance group and later with a masters competitive group. Even when I was caring for my young children, I made time for exercise videos and power walking. So, while I was not an athlete, I was not a complete couch potato either! But cancer gave me the incentive to step up my fitness goals.

A friend who had been supportive during my cancer diagnosis and treatment, invited me to join her at one of Hope Afloat’s dinners where we met many team members and learned of the twice-a-week, evening practices on the Schuylkill. While I certainly was interested in dragon boating, I just didn’t see, at that time, how I could be on the river at 6:30 p.m. After all, this was suppertime, and I was needed at home, right? But time cured that mind-set, and a few years later, I went to a Hope Afloat paddle pool workout in Bryn Mawr. I was hooked from the first practice and joined the team for the 2012 season. I’ll never forget the thrill of my first race—winning in the first heat at Paddle for Pink in 2012. Now, a decade later, I have had dragon boating experiences all over the United States and also abroad at such locations as Italy, Hungary, and the Netherlands. At each event, I have met amazing women who, like me, have fallen in love with the sport of dragon boating.

I’ve been so blessed to be a part of Hope Afloat for over a decade. My teammates have become the sisters that I do not have in my nuclear family. With our coach’s excellent direction and the support of my Hope Afloat family, I’ve grown stronger, leaner, and yes, more competitive over these years. As individuals, we all found the strength to fight cancer and thrive, but as a group, we are a force to be reckoned with both on and off of the water!