It’s been 22 years since women first filled Cedar Rapids streets for the Especially for You® Race Against Breast Cancer. We would like to hear about your history with the race: Why and how have you been involved? Have you participated every year? Do you have a team story? Have any traditions grown as a result? Have you or someone close to you benefited from the fund?
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Bride-To-Be Honors Mom with "J Low" Team in EFY Race
Kari Low has had plenty to keep her busy: work, taking two classes and planning her November 11 wedding. Preparing for that special day has been fun and exciting, but she found herself feeling a void in the midst of her joy. She was missing someone special who should be with her: her mom.
Judy Low, Kari’s mom, died of cancer in 1997, when Kari was just 22. Judy was diagnosed with advanced-stage cancer, and died only six weeks later.
Now, Kari, planning for her first marriage at age 36, found herself wishing for a way to include at least the memory of her mother in the wedding preparations. She found a unique way to do just that and also honor her mother’s memory: forming a team to walk in Sunday’s Especially For You Race Against Breast Cancer.
"My sister and I talked about doing something to remember her but nothing really struck a chord," Kari explained. "But this race stood out. I decided this was the one way I could really honor her, this year."
All the better because Saturday night, the eve of the walk, was Kari’s bridal shower. There, she handed out her team EFY shirts to her girlfriends and sister, Laurel Feldt, who made up the 10-member team. The shirts are especially distinctive. They read: J Low & the Bridal Bachelorette Babes.
"I knew it was going to be an emotional weekend, that's for sure, but I was excited," Kari said, laughing at imagining her mother’s reaction if she’d seen those shirts.
But Kari knew that her friends and family – including her dad – would wear with pride those one-of-a-kind shirts, honoring Judy and helping raise funds for breast care services. It all fit, Kari noted.
"I just hoped when they saw all those thousands of people they’d realize I chose this race because of how much of a community event this is for Cedar Rapids," Kari explained, "and how much cancer touches all of us."
