Puppy Up! New Mexico Walk

Special thanks to Sue Smith for contributing this blog on their Puppy Up! Walk in New Mexico.

When: Sunday, September 25, 2011

Time:  11:00AM to 4:00PM Mountain Time

Where: Rotary Park, Bernalillo, New Mexico

Our walk will take place at Rotary Park in Bernalillo, NM from 11 AM to 4 PM. The park is conveniently located between Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, and Santa Fe so that supporters from many communities of New Mexico can join us. To learn more about the New Mexico Walk, to volunteer, register, fundraise, and be a part of the first Puppy Up New Mexico! Walk, please visit our web page.

You can also find and friend them on Facebook.

A beautiful day at Rotary Park.

Rotoary Park NM

A great place to enjoy the day with pups and friends. Come walk with us!

cancer is a terrible monster. (I refuse to use a capital C). Too many who I have loved dearly have been taken too soon. They have left behind grieving families, unsung songs, empty tomorrows. I am talking about four-legged victims as well as human ones. This thief and murderer in all of its forms must be vanquished. It is my passionate hope that I will see that defeat within my lifetime and I carry the fight with devotion and force that cannot help but win…and I know I am not alone in this commitment.

Comparative Oncology is a new way of advancing on the foe. Cooperation and sharing… and finally recognizing the simple truth that “cancer is caner, period” gives our research more meaning and our results more impact.

I had the privilege of discussing the concept of Comparative Oncology with Luke Robinson last year and found his arguments that our best friends and furry companions are the “canaries in the coal mine” in our everyday environment insightful. They live where we live, breathe what we breathe, eat what we eat, and are exposed to the same environmental factors humans are. It just makes sense to study the diseases that affect us both as parts of the same illnesses and to seek answers in both realms.

The energy of a group of people gathered together who believe in the hope offered by Comparative Oncology and who are united to fight cancer was amazing at last year’s Fort Collins, Colorado, Puppy Up! Walk. We drove there just to participate and we were overcome with the depth of emotion we felt. Before we left that day, my family had already made a commitment to bring this intensity and its message to New Mexico in 2011.

Our goal at the 2011 2Million Dogs Puppy Up New Mexico! Walk is to create a day, an Event, centered on the Walk to be sure, but more. We want those attending to share, network, be recharged, and feel the community that exists. We have structured our day to include music, activities, presentations, and a bazaar which will get people talking to each other and connecting to kindred spirits.

One of the most amazing things I have discovered as I have organized New Mexico’s Puppy Up Walk  and spoken to potential sponsors, vendors, walkers, presenters, even musicians, is that truly, Cancer.Touches.Everyone. Almost every person I have interacted with has had a story about a relative or loved one or precious furbaby that was stolen by cancer. And each had a fire in their eyes as they told their tale; a fire that said “I have NOT forgiven. I will fight for my moment of revenge, when cancer is no more. How can I help?” I believe, together we are unstoppable in achieving success.

Education, fund raising, spreading the word – yes, those are very important parts of our walk. There is one more element that will define the day…Hope! Puppy Up New Mexico! will ultimately be a celebration of hope and love and canine confidence…and from that our victory is guaranteed.

Puppy Up!

We look forward to seeing you there!

UPDATE:  Start saving up your questions! Sonya Burr, trainer par excellence, has agreed to give a presentation on trainiing basics followed by a Q & A Session at the 2 Million Dogs Puppy Up New Mexico! Walk. Her reputation is stellar and we are honored that she will join us!

Have our presentations for Puppy Up New Mexico finalized! A talk on emergency preparedness; a hands-on seminar on how to improve your pet photos by famed NM pet photgrapher Joyce Fay; and a Pup & Me Fashion Show!

Puppy Up New Mexico is not just a walk in the Park…it is an all day EVENT!