Community Corner
Burlington Teacher Honored: Breathe Deep Boston 5k Walk
Pam Speck
was special education teacher in Burlington, Mass., a loving mother, a devoted
wife, and the eldest of four sisters. When family and friends get together to remember
the petite 5 foot woman, the words feisty, fearless, and funny are often a part
of the conversation.
Speck
was diagnosed with lung cancer in Sept. 2007 and succumbed to the disease 10
months later. She was 43 years old.
Since
her passing, the family started a new annual tradition, gathering the first
Saturday of every November to participate in and raise money for the LUNGevity
Foundation’s Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk. They band together under the name “PAMS
TEAM” sporting royal blue t-shirts with the team’s name displayed across the
chest in white letters. Speck’s little sister, Tewksbury resident, Jennifer Sovie is at the helm as team
captain.
“We
were told we had at least a year, we feel like we were robbed of those three
months with my sister,” says Sovie. “She was the matriarch of our family -- the
oldest sister and cousin and always rose to the occasion as our social events
coordinator. Here she is, five years after her death still getting us together
to honor and remember her. She meant a
lot to a lot of people.”
recalls trick-or-treating with Speck and their children while she was in the
midst of her chemotherapy treatments and with every stroke of her hair it began
to fall out. Speck took the moment in stride and roared with laughter,
proclaiming that she didn’t even need a costume that year. They held a wig
party soon after to add further humor to the situation. Despite the grueling
treatments and radiation, Speck never lost her sense of humor and fighting
spirit. She was an older sister to look up to until the very end, Sovie says.
On
Saturday, Nov. 2 at the DCR’s Mother’s Rest Area at Carson Beach in South
Boston, PAM’s TEAM will walk 50 members strong, alongside 2,000 participants in
the LUNGevity Foundation’s eighth annual Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk. The team
hopes to raise an additional $2,500 for the cause. Those interested in
supporting PAM’s TEAM can visit lungevity.org/boston, click on the “donate to
this event” button and enter the name Pam’s Team to contribute to Sovie’s
fundraising efforts.
Lung
cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States,
claiming approximately 160,000 lives every year. It can afflict anyone,
regardless of smoking history, gender, or ethnicity. Currently, only 16 percent
of people diagnosed with lung cancer survive five years post-diagnosis. With
early detection, there is hope of long-term survivorship.
“Our
goal is to be able to give someone just one more day, to breathe or finish their
bucket list,” says Sovie. “Lung cancer hit us where it hurts, this is our
cancer and now we want to do something to fight it.”
The
Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk is one of more than 80 LUNGevity events that take
place annually across the country. Founded
in 2006, the Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk has alone raised more than $1 million.
The 2013 fundraising goal is $250,000. To
register for the Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk, On Nov. 2 or to support a walker,
visit lungevity.org/boston or call (312) 407-6100. Participants may enter
discount code BREATHE for $5 off the registration fee. November is Lung Cancer
Awareness Month.
was diagnosed with lung cancer in Sept. 2007 and succumbed to the disease 10
months later. She was 43 years old.
Since
her passing, the family started a new annual tradition, gathering the first
Saturday of every November to participate in and raise money for the LUNGevity
Foundation’s Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk. They band together under the name “PAMS
TEAM” sporting royal blue t-shirts with the team’s name displayed across the
chest in white letters. Speck’s little sister, Tewksbury resident, Jennifer Sovie is at the helm as team
captain.
“We
were told we had at least a year, we feel like we were robbed of those three
months with my sister,” says Sovie. “She was the matriarch of our family -- the
oldest sister and cousin and always rose to the occasion as our social events
coordinator. Here she is, five years after her death still getting us together
to honor and remember her. She meant a
lot to a lot of people.”
With
the final months that Speck did have, she lived them to the fullest, Sovie
said. Speck proudly checked things off of her bucket list like visiting Hawaii
and purchasing a Winnebago and traveling across country. The week of her death,
she was riding rollercoasters at Hershey Park in Pennsylvania.
recalls trick-or-treating with Speck and their children while she was in the
midst of her chemotherapy treatments and with every stroke of her hair it began
to fall out. Speck took the moment in stride and roared with laughter,
proclaiming that she didn’t even need a costume that year. They held a wig
party soon after to add further humor to the situation. Despite the grueling
treatments and radiation, Speck never lost her sense of humor and fighting
spirit. She was an older sister to look up to until the very end, Sovie says.
On
Saturday, Nov. 2 at the DCR’s Mother’s Rest Area at Carson Beach in South
Boston, PAM’s TEAM will walk 50 members strong, alongside 2,000 participants in
the LUNGevity Foundation’s eighth annual Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk. The team
hopes to raise an additional $2,500 for the cause. Those interested in
supporting PAM’s TEAM can visit lungevity.org/boston, click on the “donate to
this event” button and enter the name Pam’s Team to contribute to Sovie’s
fundraising efforts.
Lung
cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States,
claiming approximately 160,000 lives every year. It can afflict anyone,
regardless of smoking history, gender, or ethnicity. Currently, only 16 percent
of people diagnosed with lung cancer survive five years post-diagnosis. With
early detection, there is hope of long-term survivorship.
“Our
goal is to be able to give someone just one more day, to breathe or finish their
bucket list,” says Sovie. “Lung cancer hit us where it hurts, this is our
cancer and now we want to do something to fight it.”
The
Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk is one of more than 80 LUNGevity events that take
place annually across the country. Founded
in 2006, the Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk has alone raised more than $1 million.
The 2013 fundraising goal is $250,000. To
register for the Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk, On Nov. 2 or to support a walker,
visit lungevity.org/boston or call (312) 407-6100. Participants may enter
discount code BREATHE for $5 off the registration fee. November is Lung Cancer
Awareness Month.
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