TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - Every year the Susan G. Komen foundation hosts their 5K Race for the Cure in Findlay and Toledo.
The goal of the race is to help reduce the number of breast cancer deaths and to spread awareness about the disease. The most important aspect of the race however is about the people affected by breast cancer and their stories.
Each year the Findlay race and the Toledo race are dedicated to two people picked by the Susan G. Komen Foundation.
Tuesday afternoon, the Komen foundation announced the honorees for the 2017 Race for the cure.
The Toledo race will be in memory of Shari Thees. Thees battled breast cancer for more than 20 years, and was an avid supporter of Race for the Cure. She passed away in 2015
"It was very important to her in particular because she knew a number of the women that were being affected and related to them, she actually looked forward to it every year," said Shari's widower Bill Thees.
The Toledo Race will be in celebration of Kim Barber. Barber will never forget the day she was diagnosed. After leaving the hospital, with what she says felt like a death sentence, she met her son for dinner who had some news of his own.[endif]
"He said I don't know what this is going to do, but you're going to be a grandmother," said Barber.
From that point on, she had a reason to fight.
"I wanted to give up so many times after treatment I was so tired. I would lay in bed and just cry and my husband would come in and say 'come on, we can't do this, we have a grand child on the way.'"
Madison, Kim's grand-daughter, is now ten-years old. Kim calls her her little angel.
This years Findlay's race will be in celebration of Sue Boyce, who is a breast cancer survivor and four time race for the cure participant. Findlay's race will be in memory of Beverly Schroder, a registered nurse for 43 years. She was already signed up for the race but passed away last month.
This year's races will take place on September 23 in Findlay and September 24 in Toledo. Each honoree along with their family will be recognized before the race begins.
