Local Woman to Skydive for a Cure

While many people walk or run for a cure for cancer, Maureen Polson will jump from a plane in this year's Jump 4 the Cure in Pepperell. Polson, of Chelmsford, is passionate about this hobby and finding a cure for cancer.

Q: What made you decide to try skydiving in the first place?
A: I first skydived back on August 15, 2009 as part of a charity event called Operation Swandive which raised funds for childhood cancer charities.  I had volunteered for the event as part of the ground crew the two years previously.  When I first was involved in the event I had said that I would not skydive due to a fear of heights but after the first year volunteering in 2007 I saw how much fun everyone was having and thought, well maybe I would, and also it was an incentive to do it as part of a charity event since initially I thought that I would be a once in a lifetime event.

 It took two years for everything to fall into place after that initial event I volunteered for and I was able to make my first tandem skydive.  I was immediately hooked and in 2009 I made a total of 5 tandem skydives including one when my husband went with me in celebration of our 10 year anniversary.

Q: You broke your arm skydiving a while ago. Are you nervous about trying it again since your injury?
A: I have not been skydiving this season since breaking my arm over Labor Day weekend last year.  I plan to return by doing a tandem skydive at the Jump for the Cure event as I am still rehabbing my arm presently.  It is a way I can test the waters to determine what I need to work on so I can eventually get back into the air on my own.  I am nervous about it but it is something that I really want to try and get back to and reach my initial goal of obtaining my skydiving license.

Q: What do you love about skydiving?
A: I love the feeling of freedom when you are in freefall with the wind rushing by you and then flying under the canopy when it is very quiet.  On a clear day, the views are always magnificent.  I always feel less stressed out once I have gone skydiving as well.

Q: If you could give some advice to a first-time skydiver, what would it be?
A: I would definitely recommend doing a tandem skydive first.  Most skydiving centers require this anyway but it is a great way to experience the sport for the first time and to get a feel for if it is something that you want to continue pursuing.  Also patience is definitely a virtue as a skydiver since the sport is weather dependent.  

Also, as surprising as it sounds, you actually do not "feel" that you are falling when you jump from an airplane.  It is more of a sensation of flying when you are in freefall.  I think that is one thing that surprised me most about skydiving when I first went.

Q: You're very passionate about raising money for a cure for cancer. What drives you to do this?
A: I started out doing charity events with my father by helping to provide communications for the St. Jude Bike Tour and also for the ADA New England Classic.  I became involved in the breast cancer charities in 2005 initially because my aunt and grandmother were both survivors of breast cancer but as I have continued on doing various events, I have had more people I know affected by breast cancer (and other cancers). My father recently passed away from prostate cancer in 2010 and then this past year with a friend's three-year-old grandson fighting malignant brain tumors which was successful.  

I firmly believe that as research progresses, if they can find a cure for one type of cancer, it will carry over into treatments for other forms of cancer.  By raising money to help fund research and to provide treatment for those who need it, I feel that I can help people most of whom I will never actually know or meet and also because it seems like, unfortunately, each year the list of people I know who have been affected by cancer continues to grow.