Many years ago, I was sitting at my son’s football practice. I had become friendly with one of the moms through our boys. We had met years earlier, but it wasn’t until football season that we really started to get to know each other.

One day, I noticed this beautiful, well-put-together woman had extremely blistered feet — toenails missing and all. I couldn’t help myself and asked, “What happened to your feet?”

She laughed and said, “I just completed the Susan G. Komen 3-Day.”

My heart immediately began to race. This was something I had always wanted to do. As she shared more, she told me she had been walking for years, but this most recent walk was especially meaningful — she had been diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer.

I couldn’t believe it. “You just walked 60 miles… and you have cancer?”

In the past, I always told myself I was too busy, or that I could never complete 60 miles in three days. But meeting her changed that. I was meant to meet Mary Beth Lampton.

That night, I went home and signed up.

Through months of training and fundraising, we became incredibly close. We shared stories about work, marriage, and our kids — all while she was undergoing surgeries, chemo, radiation, and reconstruction. She had cancer, but she was always the one helping me and taking care of others. Her smile, laughter, and amazing outlook on life were contagious.

In 2012, we walked together in the Michigan 3-Day. It was absolutely life-changing — the tears, the laughter, the pain, and the emotional journey bonded us forever.

After completing the walk, we decided to crew the next year. I just wanted to be with her, so of course, I said yes. We became even closer — celebrating birthdays, double dates with our husbands, and watching our sons become best friends.

Then one day in November, I saw a Facebook post from MB:

“Well, it looks like I am walking this year.”

My heart sank. I knew what that meant — the cancer was back. I jumped in my car to be by her side.

Even then, she remained positive and strong for everyone around her. We signed up to walk again, believing we’d have many more years of walking side by side. We trained, watched old movies, and laughed — a lot. She introduced me to P!NK, and in retrospect, she was giving me her story to carry forward.

My dear friend lost her battle with cancer on May 15, 2013, at the age of 39. She supported the Susan G. Komen organization until her very last breath.

Mary Beth believed deeply in this mission — that the research funded by Susan G. Komen would not only find a cure for breast cancer but help pave the road to end all cancer.

So, I will walk until I no longer am able to.

This marks my 14th consecutive year walking, and through it, I’ve found lifelong friends — “sisters in walking bonds” — across the country. Together, we’ve formed a team of incredible women who walk knowing we have an angel helping us across the finish line.

You meet people every day. But every once in a while, you meet someone who changes your life forever.

For me, that person was Mary Beth.