Heroes fight cancer by running

At least 20,000 people came out in pink capes Sept. 27 for the 23rd annual Komen Colorado Race for the Cure. The superhero themed run/walk to benefit cancer research brought out long time volunteers like Cindy Fiegenbaum.

Ami Bigler-Redd focuses on the 5k finish line at Denver’s Race for the Cure Sept. 27. Redd ran the race in honor of a family friend, who survived breast cancer. Photo by Michel Hansen.

“At least 20 (years), I’ve been here to support and volunteer for so many years,” Fiegenbaum said. “It’s a passion. I’ve had friends and coworkers who are survivors, and some who weren’t survivors of their breast cancer.”

Emcee of the Race for the Cure of 12 years, Jolly Demis, calls this event the biggest family reunion of the year.

“When I was asked 12 years ago to be emcee for this, I said no,” he said. “Then my wife looked at me and said, ‘I didn’t know you were such a big baby. They’re the ones with cancer!’ and so I said yes, and I’ve been doing it ever since.”

At the “Survivors Tent” volunteers passed out pink T-shirts, tote bags and little pink cow bells to breast cancer survivors. MSU Denver sophomore Jaelin Stephenson came to volunteer this year at the request of her friend Alecia Gutierrez whose aunt is a survivor. For sisters Joanne Bircher and Karen Barrocas, breast cancer has long been a family affair.

Barrocas’s little dog, Cricket, came to the race with them Sunday. Cricket has attended the event five times with Barrocas and Bircher. Bircher is a 14-year survivor of breast cancer and their sister who lives out of state is also a survivor. Their mother and grandmother were also survivors of the disease.

“Mom would have loved this,” Barrocas said. “The viaduct (is) covered with pink and white, so (from) above it looks like the ribbon circle. It’s my favorite part.”

Sporting a pink tutu, toddler Maya Yamashita sat on her mother Reagan’s hip Sunday morning. Maya’s grandmother, Marty Thrasher, is a one-year survivor of Breast cancer, and the three generations stood together in pink and white before the Race began.

Director of Development and Marketing for Susan G. Komen Colorado, Roxanne Johnson, began with the company six months ago.

“It’s such a really great organization and does so much for people that need help,” she said. “We hear stories all the time of people that need help, that can’t afford treatment and Komen steps in to help. We all need help.”

Johnson herself is a nine-year survivor, and lost her grandmother to breast cancer when she was three.