The sixth annual Peter A. Kaylor Lung Cancer Memorial Walk will be in downtown Allegan on Saturday, Sept. 29.
Registration will begin at the Riverfront stage at 6:30 p.m. with a 7 p.m. kickoff of events, including the walk, silent auction, bake sale, and live music.
Drawing upon their own personal experiences, cancer survivors and guest speakers for the walk will be Teresa Steinburg and Joyce Wilson. Also speaking will be Dr. Sunil Nagpal, a hematology specialist at the West Michigan Cancer Center who has been practicing for 29 years.
Live music will be provided in the basement of the Griswold beginning at 8 p.m. along with the silent auction and bake sale, both following the walk.
Registration costs $10, and all proceeds go to the West Michigan Cancer Center for early detection of lung cancer.
In October 2012, Peter A. Kaylor was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer. By the time he had any symptoms, the cancer had spread from his lungs to his heart, lymph nodes and brain. The professionals told his family he had four weeks to live. Five months later, in April 2013, Kaylor died.
Theresa Lynn, executive director of Wings of Hope Hospice, said, “Lung cancer is a devastating disease. It ravages the lungs and can spread to other parts of the body such as bones, the liver and the brain. Among individuals diagnosed with lung cancer, for 40 percent of them, the cancer has spread by the time they are diagnosed.”
Lung cancer research is one of the lowest funded yet one of the most deadly of cancers. In the past five years, the Peter A. Kaylor Lung Cancer Memorial Walk has raised over $20,000 for the West Michigan Cancer Center specifically for early detection of lung cancer.
In a press release, the organizers of the walk said, “Walk with us to raise even more this year to help save a life—it could be the life of your loved one. ‘Save the Date, Save a Breath, Save a Life!’”
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