Teams of breast cancer survivors will row in Head of the Charles
BOSTON - Lori Boersma and Victoria Madden are pinching themselves.
"Speechless. I almost .... I haven't slept in months," Boersma said.
Both of these women are about to embark on a journey as part of a breast cancer survivor rowing team in The Head of The Charles this weekend. They're part of a group of rowers called Survivor Rowing Network.
"It has been absolutely life-changing for every single one of us," Boersma said. Sixty-two-year-old Boersma has survived breast cancer twice. Her second bout in 2016 left her in a coma for two months. "I was given less than a 1% chance to live. And then they didn't think I would walk. Here I am. I've been rowing for five years, and it's life-changing," she said.
This weekend, two Survivor Rowing Network teams will be rowing out of the MIT Boat House. Sixty-year-old Victoria says five years ago she could barely walk. "I could barely make it down to my mailbox. Then, when we first started with our rowing program, it was building up that endurance, building up your strength," Madden said.
Their coach for the race is MIT's Women's Rowing Coach Holly Metcalf. She's been part of the cancer survivor programs for a long time. "I am here to cheer them on. To see the strength and the trust that comes back for people who are surviving cancer. Trust in their bodies," Metcalf said.
These women say the Survivor Rowing Network has given them a whole new perspective on life teaching them perseverance, teamwork and hope.
"That you can do anything. And just sticking with something and believing in yourself," Madden said.