Hard to believe that we have only a month to go!  I can tell that the Walk is coming up soon: things are starting to ramp up more and more each day. I've been going back and forth with other crew members on what costumes they are wearing, if we have costumes to share, and the other fun items we may be bringing along.  I'm getting excited!

Although the primary focus of the Walk is to raise money to help defeat MS, it is so much more.  It helps bring people with a common goal together, and the friendships that result are long-lasting and fulfilling.  The year of the first MS Challenge Walk Walk, I went to the kick-off celebration.  I really didn't know many people there and was hanging out by the wall while different things were being explained and discussed by staff members.  Not too far from me was another girl, Brandy, who looked about as uncomfortable as I felt. She too was there by herself and didn't know anyone.  We started talking, and I asked her where she was staying the night before the walk.  Back then, the walk started in Plymouth, and she was planning on driving in from north of  Boston.  I didn't like the sound of that and, trusting person that I am, asked her to come stay at my house and we would drive over together in the AM.  I know she was a complete stranger, but all these years later, we are still good friends, and she danced at my wedding not that long ago.  And we still bunk together every year!

Those are the types of friends you will make at this event: Friends you want to share the other big events in your life with.  Friends who are there for you and understand why you are fighting the fight.  That is because they are right there fighting alongside you.

Jill lives in East Taunton with her husband and a very annoying cat. She was diagnosed with MS in 1998 when she was 24. She has been participating in the Challenge Walk since the beginning as a crew member and can also be found at many other fundraising events.