N.J.'s largest breast cancer walk draws thousands to Point Pleasant boardwalk - NJ.com

POINT PLEASANT BEACH — A sea of pink filled the boards of the Point Pleasant beachfront under sunny skies on Sunday morning to help raise money for breast cancer reasearch and awareness.

Organizers estimated the annual American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K walk would attract approximately 20,000 participants, making it one of the largest breast cancer walks in the state. Along with the Point Pleasant event, the American Cancer Society sponsored six walks on Sunday, and eight total in the month of October, which is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Amanda Barrett, 37, first started participating in the Point Pleasant event about 10 years ago after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Now, Barrett acts as a senior community manager for the ACS, helping to plan the event each year.

"It's pretty amazing to come full circle and be able to give back to all the survivors we're celebrating today," Barrett said. "It was this walk that kind of got me through because I was inspired by all the survivors here that were surviving 10, 20, 30 plus years. It gave me hope that it's going to be alright."

Maureen Kuhn, a health systems manager with the ACS, said approximately 1,000 breast cancer survivors will come through the ACS' "Survivor's Tent." Each survivor was encouraged to sign their name, what town they're from and how long they've been a survivor on the "Survivor's Tree." The post-it notes ranged from two months to 44 years.

"Someone who is just beginning the journey, that's incredibly inspiring," Kuhn said of all the names on the board. "So that's really exciting."

According to figures provided by the ACS, approximately 246,660 women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016, and around 40,000 will die because of the disease. In New Jersey, 7,420 women will be diagnosed in 2016, with 1,280 who will die as a result of breast cancer.

Last year, the Point Pleasant walk raised $1.2 million in funds for breast cancer research.

Point Pleasant resident Colleen Carton, 48, has participated in the 5k for four years now. Carton was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011.

"It's very empowering," she said of participating in the event. "It's inspirational. I love seeing the survivors and anyone who is going through treatment and try to give them moral support."

Carton said since she is local, she's able to draw a large group of family and friends for support. But she wasn't alone.

Scores of people could be seen wearing shirts showing support for someone with breast cancer. There were team names, groups of sport teams and high school varsity cheerleading teams. Many people brought their dogs along for the walk, and tied pink bandanas around their necks.

Barrett, the event organizer, said it's "very emotional" to see so many young people in the crowd. She hopes they will take the message back and share it with their friends, especially information about early detection.

"It's just really great to see the whole gamut from the community out here supporting and educating themselves," she said. 

Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.