We Tell Your Story
Part of Runway's mission is to honor the legacies and stories of those who have been impacted by breast cancer. Our blog page is dedicated to helping us share those stories.
Learn more about the importance and impact of our blog by watching the following video.
After eight rounds of chemotherapy, two surgeries, and 30 rounds of radiation, Kristen is nearly one year out from finishing treatment. Now, she is stepping onto the Runway stage to show her sons something beyond the hard parts.
“This is a moment in our story,” Kristen says. “It isn’t who your mom is.”
Cassy Villalta has spent years living with uncertainty.
After doctors found a spot on her ribs in 2022, Cassy did not know whether the cancer had spread to her bones. Because the spot could not be biopsied, she moved through each treatment and appointment without the clear answer she wanted.
Still, Cassy kept going.
“I never looked at it as a diagnosis and a death sentence,” she says. “It was kind of just like, oh, this is what I have, and we’re going to do X, Y, and Z to get through it.”
Now, after three clear CT scans, Cassy is preparing to finish monthly treatment and move to six-month check-ins.
Breast cancer has shaped Maggie’s life through love, loss, and family.
Her mother passed away from breast cancer when Maggie was a young adult. At the time, there were very few people in her life who understood what it meant to lose a mother so young.
Olivia was one of them.
That shared understanding became part of what connected Maggie to Runway for Recovery.
Mariah Powell is bringing her story, her purpose, and her joy to Boston.
Since becoming part of the Runway community, Mariah has continued to grow into the kind of advocate she once hoped to see: a visible, honest, inspiring face for other Black women navigating breast cancer.
Now, as she prepares to come to Boston and step into a new role as a model mentor, Mariah is also building something of her own in Virginia Beach: a 5K fundraiser on the oceanfront to benefit Runway for Recovery.
Jenn Monkiewicz is returning to Runway’s 20th Anniversary Show because, for her, Runway has become much more than an event.
“It’s a community that truly understands this journey,” she says.
She knows survivorship is not just about getting through something. It is about finding your way forward and creating a meaningful life.
“I’m especially grateful to step onto the Runway again,” Jenn says, “not because of what happened to me, but because of where I am today and the life I continue to choose to live.”
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