12
OCTOBER2015
AMERICANWAY
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Pink fora
Purpose
PERSPECTIVE
T
heycall it “TheBigC.”And
onAugust21, 2014,my
worldwas turnedupside
downwhen Iwasdiagnosed
withastage3“C” in the
formofbreastcancer. Iwas45. Iate
healthy, exercised, didn’t smokeand
hadnogenetichistoryofbreastcancer. I
never thought thiswouldhappen tome.
Ididn’tknowmuchaboutbreast
cancerother thanbeingaware that
peopleworepinkribbons insupportof
thosebattling thedisease. In these last 14
months, I’ve learnedmoreabout cancer
than I’dever like to.But Ialso learned
that “TheBigC”canmeancare, concern
andcourage.
Whenyoureceivenews like this,
youquicklymove frommourning the
lossofyourold life toacceptinganew
lifelong journeyoffighting.And it is
lifelong.Evenwhenyoureachagoal,
theuncertaintystill lurks inyour
mind.Thereweredarkdaysduringmy
treatmentswhen Icouldn’t see thefinish
line, but Ipersevered, prayed,meditated
andstayedpositive. I learned toaccept
help fromothers,whichmadeall the
difference.My friendsandrelativeswere
my“pink team,”and theycelebratedwith
mewhen Iwasrecentlydeclared tobe
cancer-free.
Celebrate
isa“C”word too.
Thismonthyou’ll seemy fellow
employeesandmewearingpinkshirts,
scarvesand ties.Americanhassupported
breast cancerawarenessandresearch
formore than30years, andwearingpink
isaway tohonor thosewhohave fought
and thosewhoarefighting. It isalsoa
reminder foreveryone—womenand
men— toget checked.LastOctober, I
flewhalfof themonthbefore Iunderwent
treatment.Thisyearwhen Ifly, Iwill
wearpink tosymbolizehow far I’vecome
onmy journey.
Weknow thatmanyofourcustomers
have foughtbackagainst thisdisease,
and thiseffort is for them too.Lastyear,
ourcustomers joinedourefforts, and
togetherweraisedmore than$1million
forresearch— todate,we’vecontributed
more than$34.5million to thefight
againstbreast cancer.Therearevarious
waysyoucan joinus thisyear.Learn
howby turning topage98orbyvisiting
aa.com/bepink.
There isnothing likeconnectingwith
peoplewhoshareyourexperience.Over
thesummer,Americanhostedareception
foremployeeswhohavebeenaffectedby
breast cancer.Many toldme thatwhen
theyworepink lastyear, customers
wouldsharehow theywere impactedby
thedisease. Ifourpathscross, Ihopeyou
will shareyourstorywithme.
Onbehalfof the 100,000employeesof
American, thankyou forflyingwithus.
SARAHBLY
PHL-basedflight attendant
I’ve learnedmoreabout
cancer than I’dever
like to.But Ialso learned
that“TheBigC”can
meancare, concern
andcourage.
