Community

Native New Yorker help breast cancer survivor’s quest with fundraiser

May 20, 2009

Maricopa residents can grab a bite to eat and help the battle against breast cancer at a fundraising event at Native New Yorker on Thursday.

The restaurant, located on the southwest corner of John Wayne Parkway and Smith-Enke Road, is donating 20 percent of proceeds from any customer who mentions “Race for the cure” to the Susan G. Komen For the Cure on behalf of Sisters Conquering Cancer and Maricopa resident Cristi Kauffman.

Kauffman, who is a breast cancer survivor, started participating in the Breast Cancer 3-Day event, with her sister, Carri Romaine. Teaming up to form Sisters Conquering Cancer, the duo will take part in the three-day, 60-mile walk Nov. 20-22 in San Diego.

The Susan G. Komen foundation helps raise money for breast cancer research through the 3-Day events across the country. There is an event in Phoenix, but Romaine, who lives out of state, prefers walking in the cool breezes of Southern California.

“My sister thinks it’s too hot here,” said Kauffman, who hopes to raise $2,300 of a total team goal of $4,600 through donations for the cancer walk.

While the money for breast cancer research is critical, Kauffman said she’s also pushing to make more people aware of the disease. According to the American Cancer Society, more than 180,000 new cases of breast cancer were diagnosed in 2008.

“One of the goals of Susan G. Komen is to bring awareness up,” she said. “I don’t hear enough about it.”

Kauffman said walking 60 miles over a three-day period can be grueling at times, particularly in the hilly portions of the course in San Diego.

“It’s cold at night, you’re sleeping in tents. There’s nothing glamorous about this thing,” she said. But she added the end result of helping fight a disease that she has battled and also claimed the life of her grandmother makes every hardship more than worth it.

More information on Sisters Conquering Cancer, including how to donate, is available at http://08.the3day.org/goto/SCC2009.

Photo courtesy of Cristi Kauffman