Help Karen Beat Breast Cancer!!

Karen (Simpson) Ward has lived a life of health and wellness, inspiring others to become our very own version of "healthy green athletes." Whether it's competitively balling-out on the beach volleyball court or coaching others as a health/performance coach, she has been the epitome of a high performance athlete, professional, and friend (who we all looked up to and admire)! Shockingly, our healthiest friend is now fighting an aggressive form of breast cancer and she needs us to lift her up. So this is our opportunity to support Karen's battle with breast cancer. Please contribute what you can to help Karen and Jason minimize the financial stresses at this time!

Hear from her directly:

"This isn’t quite the #breastcancerawareness post I wanted to write, but I’m sharing it nonetheless.

According to the American Cancer Society, 297,790 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in women in 2023. And the biggest increase in these cases in recent years is in women between the ages of 30 and 39.

A couple weeks ago, I got the same news that 297,789 other women will also receive this year. It was a phone call that blindsided me because aside from a lump, I had NO other symptoms. I have actually been feeling really good lately.

I haven’t quite been able to find the right words to describe any of this. I’ve been angry. I’ve been confused. I’ve been in utter disbelief.

Why me? The girl whose favorite food is vegetables.

Why now? The girl who just had the best year of her life. ‍♀️‍♂️

What…the f*ck?! Is this even real life?

At 39 years young, I have been diagnosed with early stage breast cancer. I HATE that this is happening to me but am so grateful that I acted fast and caught it early. I’m also so blessed to have my youth, my health and the best support system a gal could ask for. I truly feel in the deepest depths of my healthy green heart that I am not alone in this.

I’m also extremely grateful for the amount of lifesaving scientific breakthroughs that make a variety of treatment options available to me today. A decade ago, this probably wouldn’t have been the case.

I have no doubt that I’ll come out of this just fine. But I’ll still take all the positive vibes and hugs you want to send to me and to my wonderful husband because these next 6+ months are going to a wild ride for both of us.

If there’s a point to my emotional rambling, it’s this: Cancer can show up at any age, regardless of how healthy or fit you are. (‼️)

I hope that sharing my story brings awareness to this awful and often silent disease. I hope this that it inspires more women (especially the 30-something fit ones) to be proactive with their health. If just one person catches this thing early because of my story, then it’ll all be worth it and it will have enough purpose.

And on that note…

LET’S GO….beat breast cancer!"

Karen Ward. Posted 10.17.2023