For a lot of selfless reasons, three central Vermonters will be in Boston this Friday, Saturday and Sunday, walking to raise money and awareness for breast cancer. Two of the three, Erika Bailey (right) and John Kerin (center) of Berlin, completed the 60-mile walk last year. For Renee Badeau (left) of Barre, it will be her first Komen event.

All three walkers have known lots of people affected by breast cancer, and Kerin and Badeau have had family members fighting this battle. The 3-day walk, like the disease, is also quite an undertaking. Each walker must first raise a minimum of $2,300 to enter the event in Boston, Washington D.C., Chicago and other locations across the country.

Our three central Vermonters in the Komen Boston walk each solicited many sponsors of $10, $20, $50 or more to reach their entry requirement. Badeau, who works at the Waits River Valley School and is also a Jazzercise instructor, hosted a benefit fundraiser at Barre Jazzercise.

“That’s a lot of money from just the three of us here in central Vermont,” noted Bailey, whose total to date was over $3,200.

Then there is the July weather to deal with. Last year, the temperature in Boston reached 107º during the walk. And at night, the temperature was still in the 90s, very uncomfortable, especially for those walkers who were sleeping in the “pink tent city.”

“If it wasn’t for all the well wishers who shouted encouragement or let us hose down or use pools along the way, or gave us water and food all along the way, it might not have been possible for the many thousands of walkers to finish,” explained Bailey, who admitted she only trained lightly (about five miles) last year. This year she had a leg cast on until a week before the walk, after breaking her foot on Father’s Day.

“And the Boston Police were just the most helpful people all along the race, stopping traffic when we needed a crossing,” said Kerin, who works at Kerin Sign Service in Berlin.

The Boston route starts in Framingham and finishes at UMass in Dorchester, and covers a challenging new route each day.

“But its all worth it when you cross that finish line with thousands of other walkers on that third day and people young and old are applauding and cheering you on – what a feeling of self-accomplishment!” admit Bailey and Kerin, who immediately signed up to walk in the 2012 event after crossing the finish line last year. “And we’ll probably sign up for it again next year,” believes Bailey, a long-time hostess at The Wayside Restaurant.

Badeau will be joined by two former college classmates in this weekend’s walk, and she is very psyched about the “3-Day Event,” although taking a wait and see approach about entering the 2013 walk.

Kerin is one of the few (about 50) male walkers in this event, but he notes that breast cancer does strike men, too.

“We were all welcomed and expected to complete all the same requirements and it worked out well,” he said.

Last year, $4.8 million was raised by the approximately 2600 walkers, and it is expected to grow again this year. “All the entry money must be turned in at the beginning of the walk registration, instead of allowing money to be paid up to a month after the event,” pointed out Bailey.

People can go online to www.The3Day.org to learn more about the Susan G. Komen Boston walk or donate money to our three registered walkers.