- April 18, 2024
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After placing third in his age division Sunday morning at the Pink Army 5K, Benny Aguilar, 15, walked up to Diane Romeo and placed his medal around her neck saying, “Ms. Diane, this is for you. You deserve this more than I do.”
“That brought tears to my eyes,” Romeo said, recalling the events of the morning. Romeo had just met the boy that morning, as he was part of the group of youth that her brother, Barry Stewart, coaches in the Putnam County PAL boxing club. The group came out in support of Romeo after their coach told them of her fight with breast cancer.
Romeo, a Palm Coast resident, was diagnosed with breast cancer in May and is in her second round of chemotherapy. Though she is tired, she said she is trying to follow the doctor’s advice and not let the diagnosis take over her life.
“I was overwhelmed by the whole thing, but tried to pray for health and to get through it,” Romeo said. “I feel that I was blessed.”
Romeo completed the 5K walk Oct. 12 with the support of her family and students, who walked in place of her donors.
“It was really a beautiful thing,” Romeo said. “I feel so blessed in that I have all these people supporting me and to be able to help other people. I don’t know why God chose me for this, but I feel like I’m going to get through it.”
Although Romeo’s journey to recovery is not easy, she said it’s all about keeping her faith strong.
“It’s really very hard, but to be able to be getting chemo and have the energy to make it through a walk like that, it’s empowering.”
The Pink Army
Breast cancer is the second most common form of cancer found in women, affecting about one in eight U.S. women, according to the American Cancer Society. Susan G. Komen for the Cure estimates that in 2014, 232,670 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed and that there will be 40,000 breast cancer deaths.
Florida Hospital Flagler’s Pink Army campaign raises awareness that breast cancer is curable if it is caught early enough and encourages women and men to schedule screenings.
Locally, Florida Hospital Flagler has taken the awareness campaign and added a fundraiser element to pay for mammograms and other services to Flagler women who cannot afford them. Since the fund was started in 2009, Florida Hospital Flagler has provided services for 200 women in Flagler County.
“There are several women that have gotten mammograms over the years because of the campaign and found something that needs to be checked out,” said John Subers, director of the Florida Hospital Flagler Foundation. “We know the campaign and fundraisers really are saving lives in Flagler County.”
The community has embraced the Pink Army and the fight against breast cancer, with more than 30 Pink Army flags being raised throughout the county since the start of the month.
Subers is making his rounds to those flag raisings, including all the fire stations and schools in Flagler County, the Rotary Club of Flagler County and many businesses, including Terry’s Plumbing, Woody’s Bar-B-Q and the Flagler Beachfront Winery. The common theme: passion.
“A lot of people have been touched personally, and everybody is happy to support — to get involved,” Subers said. “It is great community support.”
The number of flags raised and the 900 participants who came out to the 5K are evidence that the community has really given the Pink Army campaign legs.
Learning together
Some of the legs at the Pink Army 5K were Jaffy Lee, her daughter Rylee Millikan and six other mother/daughter pairs participating in the race as part of Rylee’s 12th birthday party.
“I felt like I wanted to establish a bonding opportunity between the girls attending the birthday party and their moms, with an understanding that this is something they should stay educated on,” Lee said. “They are old enough now, and it’s important to come together as mother and daughter and talk about it together.”
Lee’s mother, Wanda Lee, is a breast cancer survivor and was the speaker at the 2013 race. But this year was the first year they did the race together, which made this year’s event extra special for their family.
But Jaffy Lee’s involvement doesn’t stop there. As a Flagler County Teen Outreach Program facilitator, she worked with program participants to develop a Taste of Service project, which was designed to teach the group how to implement a community service learning project from start to finish.
To coincide with Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the participants invited Subers into the classroom to teach about the cause. From there, participants designed buttons, created buttons and then passed them out at the Sunday morning race.
“I wanted to bring awareness to the foundation because the money raised will stay in Flagler County,” Lee said. “I thought it was really important for people to know that the money stays local. It’s an opportunity to give back to the foundation and also to bring awareness.”
For photos from the Pink Gala, click here.
Pink Army 5K Results
Female Top 5
Arien Stiriplin 20:45.2
Tori Ehrhardt 20:55.6
Casey Ehrhardt 22:14.5
Amy Higgs 22:24.2
Heidi Alves 22:49.4
Male Top 5
Ryan Sowards 17:05.7
Jose Musso 18:20.9
River Marti 19:06.3
David Morden 19:25.1
Aspen Dillard 19:31.3
