The first time I learned about the word Cancer was when my 19 year old friend Christine Godsey found a lump in her breast.  She survived but it was still terrifying to think someone so young and healthy could potentially have this disease.  It was what they call “a scare” & by the Grace of God or fate would have it after 12 years of losing touch with each other through moves and marriage; we literally bumped into each other last March in a crowded Park Hill restaurant.  The Cherry Tomato, a place where I had the first date with my husband, my rehearsal dinner for my wedding, my first Mother’s Day Brunch and now I could add this reunion to the list of great memories that seem to take place at this little Italian restaurant.

Now there are many friends & parents of friends that I’ve lost over the past 15 years that I won’t bump into while waiting for a table.

In February 2003 I had lost my grandmother, who was a lung cancer survivor.  I was driving and heard an ad on the radio for St Baldricks; something hit me in my heart that I should do this.  I pledged that I would shave my head for children’s cancer and my friends, family and kind strangers backed me like couldn’t believe!  All the time I kept hearing my grandmother saying; “If you want to run hands through my hair you better do it now!” to my grandfather.  At this event one of the kind strangers that I met was a couple named, Paul Stroud and Annette Chunko, who had seen my profile on the St Baldricks website and wanted to meet for some reason.  This couple couldn’t believe I was doing this and waited out the event until I took the stage to be shaved.  A new friendship was made that night.  Annette was on her second battle with breast cancer and was determined to be a bigger bitch to cancer than it could be to her!

Thanksgiving 2010, Annette passed away in the night during her fourth round with breast cancer.  I didn’t attend her non-funeral-funeral due to being very ill; I said goodbye to her on trail instead.  In March of 2011 I signed up to do my first Avon Walk for Breast Cancer.  In April I began training; spending every Saturday going on hikes that were anywhere from 10 to 22 miles long.  In June I hit the trail in Keystone Colorado and walked 39 miles in 2 days.

While I got to say by goodbye in a peaceful place Annette; many others ended up visiting me on that trail. There were friends that had “scares” that I was thankful were still here today and there were the many other friends that I had comforted through their battles and had lost who visited in tears and memories.  In the time it took me to walk 39 miles, 360 people both male and female were diagnosed with breast cancer and that’s why I’ll be walking again this year.

There’s no way to nicely explain some of my driving force.  I’ve awakened to the sound of a dear friend moaning in pain as cancer took her body.  I’ve seen small children suffer and only want to play outside just one day.  I’ve seen mothers, fathers, spouses, sons, daughters, and grandchildren suffer as they watched their loved ones suffer.  If the blisters on my feet, the lose of 2 toenails, a sunburned head where my hair parted and a pulled ligament in my knee can bring funding to help early detection, transportation to treatment, research for new forms of treatment and counseling for the families…I’ll be there with walking shoes!Jenny Bonfiglio
Client Relations
(720)454-7608
jennyb@fototails.com
www.fototails.com

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This being said.   We will be doing two days of “photography” coming up to raise funds towards Jenny’s goal that she wants to reach of $2300 this year (last year she raised $1900).  If she meets this goal by JUNE 1ST, 2012 – then she has agreed to die her entire head of hair PINK!  So we need all your help… every dollar counts.  If you would just like to donate that is AWESOME too…. but if you want to take advantage of some photo time with me here are the details:

Location: Fototails Studio in Denver, Colorado

Sessions: $30 for a 30 minute portrait session that day – BY APPOINTMENT ONLY.

To book your session contact Jenny directly at jennyb@fototails.com or give her a call at (720)454-7608