Walk in the park raises funds to fight cancer

When Valerie David felt chest pains 10 years ago, she thought it was a muscle problem caused by her workouts. It turned out to be cancer. The city actress could not believe the lymphoma diagnosis. “I said, ‘I don’t have time for this.’ I was in four shows.” She asked her doctor if they could wait. “If you don’t get treatment now, this is fatal,” the doctor replied.
Ten years of treatment followed. The intense period felt like a lifetime of its own, but David kept telling herself this was just a test of her strength. “At no time during the treatment did I think I was not gonna make it,” said David, 39. This year, the tumor finally disappeared.
To help raise awareness and money for lymphoma and leukemia research, David, together with about 1,500 other people from the borough and beyond, participated in the annual Queens walk of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society on Saturday, October 18.
The group, which walked two miles in Woodhaven’s Forest Park, raised over $290,000, said Michael Osso, executive director of the New York City Chapter of The Society. The suggested donation to participate in the evening walk was $25, but most people gave between $200 and $300, Osso explained.
The major donors in Queens were Citibank and Michael C. Fina, a Queens company selling plate ware and fine china. “My father has leukemia. [Donating] is very important to us,” said Michael Fina, the owner of the company, explaining that this year they have given over $88,000.
The funds raised during the Queens walk, along with the money collected during this year’s walks in Staten Island and Manhattan, add up to almost $2.3 million for the entire city, compared to last year’s $2 million, said Osso.
Leukemia and lymphoma, as well as myeloma and myelodysplastic syndromes, are cancers that start in the bone marrow or lymphatic tissues. An estimated 894,543 Americans are living with one of these conditions, according to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
The conditions are treated with drugs and radiation as well as blood and marrow stem cell transplantation.