LOYAL. LOCAL. COMPLETE.
On Saturday, June 15, the first annual Our Walk for Menopause Awareness takes place at West Twin Lakes Park. Check-in is from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. with the walk beginning at 10:30 a.m.
Menopause is a time in a woman’s life that is not talked about enough. Most people have heard of it, but are not well educated on the topic.
The event hopes to provide resources and support for individuals who are interested.
Organizer Heather Sutton came up with the idea of a support walk after dealing with her own health issues and reaching out to others online.
“A coworker of mine is around the same age and we both had to deal with the frustration of the whole situation. We weren’t getting much information from our doctors,” said Sutton. “I became a member of a menopause awareness group on Facebook. The conversations and history of some of the women that were in much worse conditions, it just made it very sad. We weren’t getting any attention for that.”
The menopause awareness group was a major catalyst for starting the walk and now the event is hoping to continue the 5K each year, to keep the awareness growing.
“Someone online had mentioned that we should all meet up to share stories and support each other outside of the Facebook page,” said Sutton. “So I thought I would try to put an event together here in Paris. I hope that we have a good group of people show up on Saturday. This is our first year putting together this event and we hope to have this every year.”
Along with raising awareness and showing support for women in the community, Sutton and other organizers are using this event to raise money to fund a scholarship.
“We are taking all money raised from this event to put towards a scholarship for a college student. Our goal is $2,000 and we are currently around $700,” said Sutton.
Sutton recognizes the event is more than just a walk or a way to raise money. The event is to provide support for those in the community who feel they do not receive enough information from their doctors or others.
“We’re told ‘It’s a part of life’ (and) that may be the case. We might not be able to avoid it, but that doesn’t mean we have to suffer through it,” said Sutton. “You are not alone. We can all help each other through this process. We deserve a choice of what conversations we are having and what our options are."
Sign-ups for Our Walk for Menopause Awareness can be accessed at https://ourwalkformenopauseawareness.itsyourrace.com//register
The cost to register is $13.50 per person. Two drawings will be done to win one of two free books (The New Menopause/The Galveston Diet) by Mary Claire Haver.