Light The Night - Walking With Bill's Family

A few weeks back, I participated in an event with Bill’s family called Light the Night, which is walking for Lymphoma and Leukemia as well as blood cancers. It is done to raise awareness and funds and to bring all those people together into one place who are wrestling with the same realities of what life handed them. It was amazing to see people coming together to stand for others, whether remembered or currently fighting.

Each participant receives a different color balloon based on whether they are walking in honor of someone, in memory of someone, or are a survivor. We were walking in memory of Bill’s grandpa who passed away last fall, and it was really special to think of him with a group of people who loved him so dearly. Our gold balloons represented a truly great man, and I could not help but be a little emotional at the weight of it all. He is dearly missed.

The walk took place at Angel’s Stadium, and we took a few pictures ahead of time, and you can see the giant crowd behind us. While the atmosphere was different than I expected, the size of the group was greater than I expected. We walked around the stadium and onto the field then around the first level and looked at a memorial of people who had been lost by these diseases. I was just a few miles, and it was really moving. The entire event is done in an empowering way. I expected it to be more somber, but the way it was done left hope rather than grief.

My heart is always with Bill’s family, but this was amazing to be physically with them for something like this. Support was palpable, and I hope they know how much I love them and how deep my prayers for their hearts run.

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