Dallas United Crew PINK

My name is Kristin, and this year I turned 58—an age my mother never had the opportunity to reach. She died at 57 from inflammatory breast cancer, and my grandmother also passed away from breast cancer.

In 2025, I was diagnosed with early-stage invasive lobular breast cancer in my right breast. After a lumpectomy, my lymph nodes were clear. Then, in 2026, doctors found another small invasive lobular cancer in my left breast.

Cancer has affected generations of women in my family and both of my breasts, but I refuse to let it define my life.

Dragon boating has become an important part of my cancer journey. It has given me something positive and powerful to move toward—not simply something to survive. When I am in the boat, I am not a diagnosis or a patient waiting for another test result. I am strong. I am an athlete. I am part of a team of women who understand without needing an explanation.

This year, dragon boating took me all the way to France, where I competed alongside thousands of breast cancer survivors from around the world. Seeing so many women paddling together reminded me that life after a diagnosis does not have to become smaller. It can continue to expand in ways we never imagined.

The boat has given me strength, confidence, friendship, adventure, and a renewed appreciation for being alive. It has helped me keep moving forward while honoring my mother, my grandmother, my son, and the years I have been given.

Now, I want to share that experience with other women. I want every breast cancer survivor to have the opportunity to get in the boat, feel strong again, and discover a community that will paddle beside her.

Your donation helps provide boat access, coaching, equipment, training, travel, and competition opportunities. More importantly, it helps another woman find hope, confidence, friendship, and a life that continues to grow beyond breast cancer.

Please help us welcome more survivors into the boat.

Together, we are stronger. Together, we keep paddling.