Tomorrow I’m doing my second bike ride this month for a beautiful charity. On June 1st, I rode my bike in the Tour de Cure Twin Cities, raising money for diabetes research and camps for kids with diabetes put on by the American Diabetes Association. The ride I’m doing tomorrow, June 22, is for The … Read more
I made a vow that I would officially start cycling training again by March 1st. And that’s today, so here I am! I got my bike set up last weekend. No small feat, as I had to change out the rear tire and wipe the entire bike off, yes it was covered in dust!! Plus … Read more
I love bike riding. I also love reading. For safety reasons, I don’t bike and read at the same time. I confess, I am not a fast bike rider. I wish I was, in fact, I’ve trained to go fast, and sadly, it never happened for me. Nonetheless, when I’m out biking and the wind … Read more
On Sunday, October 14, 2018, 14 women who all had mastectomies as part of their breast cancer treatments, got a complimentary tattoo over her scars as part of the Minneapolis – Saint Paul P.ink Tattoo Day. P.ink, pronounced pea ink, stands for Personal Ink. P.ink is an organization that is 100% volunteer run, and here … Read more
You all know that I have been living with diabetes for 37 years and that much of my life and drive to keep up with endurance training is because my diabetes management is exponentially better when I regularly exercise. (oh yes, turns out that’s true for most of us, diabetes or not!) I don’t talk … Read more
Are you like me and do you sign up to do at least one athletic charity fundraising event every year? As someone who lives with diabetes every single day, and as a two time cancer survivor, there are LOTS of athletic charity events I could do! In the spirit of not overwhelming my friends year … Read more
I met Alexis Acker-Halbur when I was 16 years old and she was the Counselor-In-Training (CIT) coordinator at Camp Needlepoint, a Minnesota/Wisconsin summer camp for kids and teens with type 1 diabetes. I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in June 1981, one month after I turned 16 years old. I took the bus out … Read more
Note from Mari: This is a blog post written by Michelle Scharber Banks. Michelle was a volunteer at P.ink Day MSP 2015 and again for 2016. In addition, she got her transformative, healing tattoo this year. Here is Michelle’s beautiful story & a poem she wrote, in her own words: After the Tattoo I’ve been … Read more
Breathe deep. Plant my feet firmly on this beautiful Earth. Feel my heart open. Allow grief, loss, relief, gratitude, to one by one wash through my being. Today, October 20th, marks the 12th anniversary of my first breast cancer diagnosis. I am still alive. I am healthier than I have perhaps ever been. My attitude … Read more
No two ways about it, breast cancer, and all cancer, sucks. It interrupts life in a big way. It causes anxiety, fear and trauma, to name just a few of the difficult emotions. Cancer hit me twice, and both times it knocked me flat on my face. I cried harder than I have ever cried and it made me very angry. Both times, I found I had to reach deep inside myself to find strength to carry on. Both times I had to look hard to find a silver lining.