This SENDtember, I’m challenging myself to hike 50 miles throughout New York with a goal of raising $500 for the Send It Foundation!
In 2018, at 26 years old, I was diagnosed with Stage III Triple Negative Breast Cancer. Cancer at that age changed my life in ways that extended far beyond treatment. A few years later, in 2021, I went on my first Send It trip to Stinson Beach, California, and the experience was genuinely life-changing.
On my trip, I was surrounded by other young adults who understood what it meant to have cancer interrupt your life at an age when it feels like no one around you is supposed to be dealing with it.
Send It meant so much to me that I eventually went from being a participant to becoming a Send It leader, because I believe so strongly in what this organization does and wanted to help create that same experience for other young adults affected by cancer.
Send It provides free outdoor adventure programs for young adult cancer fighters and survivors (ages 21–40). Through activities like skiing, surfing, climbing, mountain biking, backpacking, and mindfulness retreats, participants find something that is often missing after a cancer diagnosis: connection with people who truly understand what they're going through.
While treatment focuses on the physical side of cancer, Send It helps address the emotional and mental wellbeing that comes from community, confidence, challenge, and time spent in nature. Every program is fully funded so that finances are never a barrier to participation.
Every donation will have twice the impact thanks to a generous matching challenge. Every dollar donated will be matched dollar-for-dollar, helping even more young adults access these life-changing experiences.
Thank you for supporting my challenge and the mission of the Send It Foundation! :) xoxo