By Keri DeTore
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

Since January, we’ve been following the story of Lisa Town, diagnosed with breast cancer at age 43, and her husband David Town, who committed to participating in this year’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center Climb to Fight Breast Cancer on Mount Rainier.

Here’s our original story from January; then in March, they held a fundraiser at Talarico’s to help them get to their $5,000 goal, the amount required to participate in the climb. Tonight, we can report that not only did they reach their financial goal, but David summitted Mount Rainier on July 24th during Climb for the Cure.

“It was a great feeling … a big relief,” says David.

(Photo by Scott Kramer)
Though the climb itself was tough, he says he thought about home and his wife Lisa to keep himself moving. “It was hard to breathe — it was my first time past 10,000 feet.” David adds that in his group of eight climbers, all had been affected in some way by breast cancer: “Everyone had stories, even the guides.”

Fred Hutchinson employees came to the gear check on the first day of the hike, bringing two sets of prayer flags. One of those sets of flags now hangs in David’s office; they display notes and signatures from members of his hiking group. “It was so great to meet these people, everyone got along…and did so well.”

Regarding David’s accomplishment, Lisa says, “I am extraordinarily proud and happy for him that he achieved what he set out to do.”

As for next steps, after taking a week off from doing anything physical, David is back to running and will continue hiking and backpacking.

The experiences and challenges of the past couple of years have inspired Lisa to look into opening a non-profit organization that provides financial and emotional support for people going through cancer treatment. Currently, financial aid is available to cover only the cost of medications, but none of the other treatments or procedures associated with cancer care. She says that right now, “This is just in the germination stage, but it’s a real necessity.”

David adds that they will still be accepting donations for cancer research for the next couple of months. To donate, visit his website: climb4cure.blogspot.com.

(EDITOR’S NOTE: His climb was the second of four Mount Rainier climbs in the Fred Hutchinson program this summer – the third one got under way today; progress reports on the climbs are posted on the program’s official Twitter account.)