Welcome to my personal page for the 39 Walk to End Breast Cancer formerly known as The Avon Walk for Breast Cancer!  Well some of you know me as Rhonda Hirschman (my High School friends), Rhonda Halpern (my business associates), and Rhonda Beer (my married name)!  So many names for one person, with so many personalities...as most of you know!

Well here we are again.  It is that time of year where I ask my friends and family to join me for a very powerful fight against Breast Cancer.  As all of you know this has been my passion since I was in treatment for my own Breast Cancer!

In our lifetime, we all know or have known someone that has been touched by Cancer. My mother died at age 47 of Lung Cancer. She was a non-smoker, but her disease didn’t care, it had its own agenda. Just 10 days before my 44th birthday, I was informed about an irregularity on my mammogram; which was consistent with DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma in Situ) Breast Cancer.  With my sister, Andrea by my side we looked at each other with determination and said; we lost the first battle of Cancer with our mother, but we were not about to lose this battle with Breast Cancer.  I am very lucky to have an incredible support system.  I have an amazing family, my husband Ed, my step-daughter, Pamela, my nieces Rachel and Allison (who still give us crap for not telling them the whole story from the beginning), and of course my sister...oh and my Dad and Terry!

When my treatments were over, both Andrea and I made a very important decision. We would no longer sit on the sidelines and hope to be lucky. I was given the gift of survival and now it was my turn to give that chance to other woman not as fortunate as I am.  This year we have had a few scares, with both Andrea and myself, but everyone is healthy!

The money I raise will be managed and disbursed by the Avon Foundation Breast Cancer Crusade to help provide access to care for those who most need it, fund educational program and accelerate research into new treatments and potential cures. 

Armed with early detection, and let’s not forget great Health Insurance, I am cancer free and celebrating as a 14 YEAR SURVIVOR!

As before, I will be working as Crew, at a Quick Stop, now known as a “Water Stop”. Well they roped me in again to be a Team Leader again!  Must be something about how I like to take control!  We will be supporting the walkers with Water, Gatorade and Ice, and of course candy.  Thanks to Rite Aid and Target for their amazing donation of candy...the walkers will be very happy when they come to our....Tropical Beach Party!

As a 14 year survivor, I would like to honor a dear friends...... Vera Villarose and Sahar Shamoun, who are now celebrating almost 5 years as Survivors and join Randee Martin (14 years for Randee as well), and myself as SURVIVORS!   Welcome to our club ladies!!  We also welcome our new friends Roxanne Karres (Lisa's Sister) and Janie McLaughlan who are now survivors!  We wish good luck to “E” who is now going thru her journey…and doing great!

Unfortunately there are a few ladies who DID NOT WIN THE BATTLE.   We would like to honor their memory.........

Candida Vorges, Debra Neizer (Meredith’s sister) Marilyn Rothman (Ed's Aunt/Liz’s Grandma), Lynn Bezerman Gannon (Corey’s sister), Linda Zahler and Diane Renae Stuver (Thomas), Billie Tendler (Jamie's Mom), Lorraine Masiello (Ken's Mom), Jeannette Borsten  (Sue's Mom) and June Toschi (Penny's Mom, Carolynn's Grandma)!. You are always in our hearts and never forgotten!

This Avon 3-Day Crusade is for women who are less fortunate, who can’t afford the best Health Insurance and can’t afford mammograms, great doctors or treatment on a timely basis. Do these women have less of a right to survive than I do simply because of economics? Unfortunately, the simple truth is that they don’t have the same chance without someone to help them. Avon’s 3-Day crusade gets women mammograms that can’t afford them, they provide fast biopsies for women whose insurance companies want them to wait six months before they get approval and they provide transportation to women who have no way to get to their Chemotherapy or Radiation Treatments. It also provides for research, education, wigs and a myriad of other things.

Here are some staggering facts:

* A new case of Breast Cancer will be diagnosed every 3 minutes.

* 1 out of every 9 women in America will develop breast cancer in her lifetime

* 1 women dies of breast cancer every 13 minutes

Thanks for visiting my Avon Walk page. I've committed to participating in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. It's a big commitment, one that will require me to spend the next several months training and fundraising. But breast cancer is a big disease, one that still affects far too many people, and I'm determined to do everything I can to help put an end to it. The money I raise will be managed and disbursed by the Avon Foundation Breast Cancer Crusade to help provide access to care for those that most need it, fund educational programs, and accelerate research into new treatments and potential cures. I’ll be just one of thousands of people that will walk up to a marathon and a half over a weekend, raising awareness of the cause and educating even more people. I can't do it without your help. You can make a donation to my fundraising campaign

Any amount, large or small will be greatly appreciated and will help to defeat this disease and definitely save lives. Please join me on my crusade and take the time to do this now and help change these statistics. You can make a donation right here on the website by clicking the "Donate Now" button on this page. If you prefer to write a check, please contact me, and I'll send you the information and form.

Thank you for your continued support!

Rhonda