Over the last twenty-two years, the Piedmont Augusta Foundation’s Miracle Mile Walk has raised millions of dollars to help women in the CSRA have access to life-saving mammograms, which help in early detection of breast cancer. After two years of hosting the walk as a drive-thru event, this October 15th, the streets of downtown Augusta will once again be flooded with the Pink Wave of walkers to celebrate breast cancer survivors and give hope to women everywhere.
Amanda Richardson, who has been spearheading the walk since 2018 in her role as Development Officer at the Piedmont Augusta Foundation (formerly the University Health Care Foundation), loves that the walk will return in-person full force this year. “We're so excited,” shares Amanda. “For the last two years we still got to celebrate survivors and raise a significant amount of money to serve our purpose, which is ultimately to make more survivors. However, being able to get back to the Augusta Common…. it's a tradition and we love it.”
One of the most exciting aspects of the Miracle Mile Walk stems from the fact that the money raised benefits women right here in the CSRA. “All the money that we raise helps fund mammograms for under insured and uninsured women right here our community,” explains Amanda. “It supports the Piedmont Augusta’s Randy W. Cooper, MD, Center for Breast Health Services and it also helps keep the region's only mobile mammography unit out in underserved areas in this community. The mobile mammography unit serves twenty-three counties in Georgia and three in South Carolina. Since the program began, the mobile unit has performed 72,000 screening mammograms and has traveled over 260,000 miles, with approximately 350 diagnoses of cancers.”
Together, the Center for Breast Health Services and the mobile mammography unit strive to provide all women with the best possible screening and diagnostic services. “The Piedmont Augusta Foundation also helps fund mammograms at the Breast Health Imaging Center, and they really pride themselves on the fact that they don't have to turn anyone away,” shares Amanda. "No one gets left with a problem. If a patient needs further diagnostic screening or even a biopsy, the foundation is there to help. Should someone receive a diagnosis, they follow patients from diagnosis, through treatment, and into survivorship. Which is important because, unfortunately, one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.”
Amanda hopes to have the largest crowd yet join the morning full of activities on Saturday, October 15th. “The pre-walk program starts at 8:00am at the Augusta Common, located at 836 Reynolds Street, and the walk will kick off at 9:00am,” explains Amanda. “It’s a three-mile fun walk starting in downtown Augusta at the Augusta Common. We walk in front of Piedmont Augusta Hospital and come back down to end at the Augusta Common. Once we’re back there, we do a post-walk celebration and raffle drawings. This year we’re raffling off a golf cart and some other great prizes.” Included in the festivities is a survivor tent where breast cancer survivors can check in and pick up special survivor gifts. Other stations include a place to drop off donations and opportunities to purchase raffle tickets and a variety of Miracle Mile Walk merchandise.
For information on participating in the walk or finding other ways you can volunteer and support the Piedmont Augusta Foundation and the Miracle Mile Walk, visit www.themiraclemilewalk.org. For breast health-specific information, please visit the Center for Breast Health’s website www.universityhealth.org/cancer/breast-health-center or call 706-774-4141.
