CANCER-FIGHTER KNOWS HOW IFFY LIFE CAN BE SHE WALKS TO MAKE IT BETTER.Byline: ERIC LEACH Staff Writer Many of those who will join the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer The Avon Walk for Breast Cancer is a fundraising effort to support the Avon Foundation in researching a cure for breast cancer. Participants are required to raise a minimum of $1800 for the cause and over the course of two days walk either 26.2 or 39.3 miles. next month have faced life-altering challenges. Then there's Jenifer Clark. The breast-cancer survivor is the widow of Michael Clark Michael (or Mike) Clark can refer to the following people:
adj. 1. Of or relating to suicide. 2. Likely to attempt suicide. man. Although Clark is only 39, her adult life has been marked by shocking setbacks that have taught her lessons in how to survive. ``They always say that God never gives you more than you can handle,'' said Clark, who lives in Simi Valley. ``There are a lot of people out there a lot worse than I am. I figure for each tragedy that is handed to me, I can make the world a better place for somebody else.'' Michael Clark remains the only officer killed in the line of duty In the Line of Duty may refer to:
Initially after her husband was shot, she said, she was so stunned stun tr.v. stunned, stun·ning, stuns 1. To daze or render senseless, by or as if by a blow. 2. To overwhelm or daze with a loud noise. 3. she could hardly move. It felt like her heart had been ripped out. With encouragement from her mother and other family members, she has pulled through and learned new ways of meeting life's challenges and tried to help others rather than worrying about herself. But it hasn't been easy. In 1999, her mother, Lana Landry, died. The next year, her brother-in-law tried to kill her sister, Jana Leth, before killing himself. And in September 2004, Clark was told a biopsy on a lump in her breast showed she had breast cancer. She underwent surgery and is now out of treatment and in training for the Avon Walk with her friend, Deborah Wollum, a Simi Valley chiropractor chiropractor a practitioner in chiropractic. chiropractor A health professional trained in chiropractic; chiropractors do not perform surgery or prescribe drugs; of 50,000 licensed chiropractors in the US, many practice 'straight' chiropractic, ie . In reaction to the slaying of her husband and the attack on her sister, Clark has volunteered to work for the victims advocacy unit of the Ventura County District Attorney's Office and became a bereavement Bereavement Definition Bereavement refers to the period of mourning and grief following the death of a beloved person or animal. The English word bereavement counselor with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles (Latin: Archidioecesis Angelorum in California) is a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in the western region of the United States. . She spoke before the state Legislature A state legislature may refer to a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. The following legislatures exist in the following political subdivisions: Participating in the Avon Walk is a way to use her own experience with cancer to help others cope with and prevent the disease. ``I never want to be one of those people who just lays in bed and wallows in my misery,'' she said. ``I lost a high school friend of mine to breast cancer, and a year later I found out I had it. I want people to know that at some time in your life, it will affect you. Why not fight for the cure now?'' Wollum said she and Clark have been friends since the mid-1990s. ``She and her whole family have been through a lot,'' Wollum said. ``I admire the way she's dealt with all of this. ... She's tried to make things better for others because of the things she's gone through.'' Wollum has not had breast cancer but said she has met many breast-cancer patients through her practice. ``Some of them have died and some have recovered and are doing well,'' she said. ``We want to bring more awareness to this.'' Clark said she and Wollum plan to walk 39.5 miles over two days during the walk. Their pledges have come from friends, family members, Simi Valley businesses and civic groups. In addition to walking in their neighborhoods, they take training walks twice a week around Simi Valley parks and invite others interested in participating in the Avon Walk to join them. Leth said the tragic experiences like those she and her sister have faced can seem to happen in a matter of seconds. They ``can and will affect your life forever, but how they will shape your life is entirely up to you,'' Leth wrote in a letter in support of her sister's Avon Walk efforts. The Avon Walk for Breast Cancer involves fundraising events in eight U.S. cities this year. Each walk attracts several thousand participants from across the country, including hundreds of breast-cancer survivors. Avon Walks have already been held in Washington, D.C., Boston, Chicago, Denver and San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden . Across the nation, the walks have raised more than $100 million from 2003 to 2005 for cancer research. eric.leach(at)dailynews.com (805) 583-7602 IF YOU GO The Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Avon Walk is Sept. 16-17, covering a route in and around Long Beach, where participants will camp overnight. For more information, to volunteer or make donations, call (800) 510-WALK or go to www.avonwalk.org. CAPTION(S): 2 photos, box Photo: (1) Deborah Wollum, left, and Jenifer Clark of Simi Valley have raised about $7,000 in pledges for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. They plan to walk 39.5 miles over the two days of the event, and train for the walk at Rancho ran·cho n. pl. ran·chos Southwestern U.S. 1. A hut or group of huts for housing ranch workers. 2. A ranch. Madera Community Park. (2) Jenifer Clark is a cancer survivor. Her hat is on the left, and Deborah Wollum's is on the right. Both have raised about $7,000 in pledges for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. Joe Binoya/Special to Daily News Box: IF YOU GO (see text) |
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