As many of you know, my best friend, Kathryn, was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer just weeks after the birth of her second child. Her grace and strength through everything she's survived these past two years have been nothing short of extraordinary. She’s an amazing mom to two beautiful kiddos, both under the age of 5. She’s kind, and compassionate, and generous, and brilliant, and beautiful. And she’s my person.  I love her beyond measure.

As many of you also know, I lost my own mom to breast cancer when I was 8.  Kat’s diagnosis has been a stark reminder that 30 years later, young moms are still facing these heartbreaking diagnoses.  Young kids are still facing futures without their moms.  Futures where the person who loves them most struggles to love them as long as she can. 

Our team of buddies is raising money for the Canadian Cancer Society, but we also want to use this platform to advocate for better early detection measures for young people, and for young pregnant people in particular.  Breast cancer is the most common cancer in pregnant and postpartum people and occurs in about 1 in 3,000 pregnancies. The average person in these cases is between the ages of 32 and 38. As many people delay having kids until they’re older, it's likely that the incidence of breast cancer during pregnancy will increase.  We need better policies, better research, and better training for doctors.  We need to do better for families.

If you have the means, we’d love your support. xo