Susan G. Komen three-day participants stroll through Manayunk and Mt. Airy

The mood was upbeat along Main Street on Friday afternoon as participants from the Susan G. Komen three-day walk for the cure strolled through Manayunk.

An enthusiastic group cheered the women and men on as they proudly sported pink shirts, skirts and, in some cases, hair.

“It’s a very interesting thing,” said Stafford Keer about the event. “My daughter and daughter-in-law are both participating in this event. Each of them raised $3,000 a piece.”

Keer and his wife, Jean, cheered on Team Pottstown Rumble. Thousands of women and men participate in the event each year to raise money for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. They will walk 60-miles over the course of three days.

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“They certainly raise awareness,” said Jean Keer. “It is amazing how many women are affected by this disease.”

Breast cancer has touched millions of people. According to Stafford Keer, his grandmother and his daughter both survived it. It also affects men. Stafford told a story about a male neighbor who succumbed to breast cancer within six months of moving in.

The net proceeds from the 3-Day for the Cure funds breast cancer research and programs supporting education, screening and treatment. According to the3day.org, virtually every major advance in the fight against breast cancer in the last 28 years has been impacted by a Komen for the Cure grant.

Main Street between Cotton and Gay streets was designed as a ‘Cheer Zone’. These public cheering stations are a way to show support along the route to encourage walkers.

Seeing familiar faces cheering them on provided that extra burst of energy that gets participants to take that next step or go the next mile. Cheerleaders create banners, held up signs, played music and made some noise.

At Bryn Mawr Running Co., there was water for participants. The Keers, joined by spectators Evan Post and Kim Colasante, waited outside in the short rain shower before the sky cleared. As walkers strolled by, they cheered. The cheering for the walkers slowly built up as the lunch rush filled the Main Street restaurants.

An unspoken wave of pink pride swept through the streets as the groups made their way back home.

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