Walpole residents honor mother in Breathe Deep Boston

On January 3, 2010, Tina Gay, 51, of Walpole, learned her mother and best friend, Geraldine Crowley, was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. For the next seven months, she served as her mother’s primary caregiver; helping her through chemotherapy, brain surgery and radiation treatments. Unable to stop the cancer from spreading to her bones and brain, Crowley ultimately lost her life to the disease that summer. She was 72 years old. Gay was devastated.

Knowing lung cancer is a disease with less treatments options available today compared to other cancers and no known cure, Gay decided to channel her grief into something positive in order to provide hope for future lung cancer patients and their families. In November 2011, she and her husband, Bob, 50, of Walpole, laced up their sneakers for the first time to participate in LUNGevity Foundation’s Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk, a fundraising event which raises money to support critical lung cancer research, advocacy and support across the country.

“It was an honor and a privilege to be my mother’s caregiver during her seven month battle with this awful disease,” says Gay. “During that time, it was very difficult watching someone you love fight this terrible disease, which is usually not detected until it is not curable. I knew I had to do something about that.”

On Saturday, Nov. 1, the Gays will return to DCR’s Mother’s Rest Area at Carson Beach in South Boston to walk in the ninth annual Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk. They will be among an expected 2,000 people to participate and collectively raise $250,000. The husband and wife duo hope to raise $1,000.

“I remember participating in the Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk for the first time and how cold it was outside that day,” says Gay. “But, knowing the money I raised would go directly to advance early detection, find better treatments and hopefully one day a cure for current and future lung cancer patients, I was grateful to be part of the experience. My mom was my best friend. I do this for her.”

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, claiming approximately 160,000 lives every year. It can afflict anyone, regardless of smoking history, gender, or ethnicity. Currently, only 17 percent of people diagnosed with lung cancer survive five years post-diagnosis. With early detection, there is hope of long-term survivorship.

The Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk is one of more than 80 LUNGevity events that take place annually across the country. Since 2002, they have collectively raised nearly $16 million for the LUNGevity Foundation, the nation’s largest private organization dedicated to research for the early detection and treatment of lung cancer. Founded in 2006, the Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk has alone raised more than $1 million.

Participants often walk in honor of someone currently battling lung cancer or in memory of someone lost to the disease. Individuals and/or businesses are encouraged to sign up as teams. The event will take place at DCR’s Mother’s Rest Area at Carson Beach in South Boston. The walk will kick-off at 11 a.m. and the course is stroller and wheelchair-friendly.

To register for the Breathe Deep Boston 5K Walk on Nov. 1, or to support a walker, visit lungevity.org/boston or call (312) 407-6100. Participants can enter the discount code BREATHE for $5 off the registration fee. November is lung cancer awareness month.