One less plaque

Dear Leah Louise,
I didn't know Cindy Beckley, but she died young. Her plaque (handmade by whom? Friends? Her husband? Her children?) is one of many set into a memorial wall in The Women's Courtyard at Ohio State. Many beloved mothers, sisters, wives and friends have words of love about them written into ceramic for all who pass by to read. So many of them say, "We miss you" and too many of them belong to women who were in the prime of their lives, just like Cindy was. Without a doubt, breast cancer claimed many of them.
I know you have received support from friends and family for your walk to fight this destroyer of lives. Many of your supporters sent money in honor of or in memory of a loved one, and I know you will think of them as you walk each of the many miles this coming weekend.
Let this thought add strength to your steps: Because of you, and people like you, who have trained for months and will be a part of this effort, somewhere a family will celebrate the cure of a woman they love from breast cancer. One less plaque, Leah.