Former Emporian Prepares for a long weekend walk in Boston
By Patrick Kelley
Friday, September 19, 2008
Emporia native Amy Palmer is on her way to Boston, Mass., this weekend. When she gets there, she plans to take a long walk.
Palmer, 33, whose family moved from Emporia when she was in middle school, plans to participate in the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk to raise money for cancer research and care.
Sunday’s walk will take her along the full route of the Boston Marathon — 26.2 miles through Boston and its suburbs. The walk will take many hours to complete.
To qualify for the full route, Palmer raised $525 in sponsorships, more than double the required amount.
“I set a goal of $500,” she said Wednesday. “I think I’ve got $525 now.”
The Jimmy Fund supports the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, which is affiliated with Harvard Medical School. The institute carries on cancer research and treats adults and children with many forms of cancer.
Palmer got involved with the fund in honor of her father, Glenn Palmer, now of Wichita, who had multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer.
Palmer said Wednesday that her father’s cancer is in remission.
She has been training regularly for the walk.
“I’ve been training for over a year for this,” she said.
A recent job change has thrown her off her schedule, but she said she is confident that she is in good shape for the walk.