Sharon Keener and Lucy McNally have spent the past three months training for the trip of a lifetime.
As part of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s new Hike for Discovery adventure fundraising program, the two Lake Orion residents will soon be hiking in the Grand Canyon.
They are part of a team of 45 traveling from Michigan to the Grand Canyon.
Each participant is required to raise $3,700 for the trip, with at least 75 percent of that going to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
Their team has already raised over $145,000.
Keener, who lost a young daughter to cancer 19 years ago, has done other fundraising in the past, including the Breast Cancer 3Day.
‘Any fundraising for research benefits all types of cancer,? she said.
In addition to funding research, McNally, a nurse, said that the money raised for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society also helps grieving families.
‘The families are devastated, and the society offers counseling and financial help, which is rare,? she said.
Keener became involved with the hike when she happened upon an e-mail explaining it. McNally became aware of it through a friend that she works with.
Each hiker recognizes an honoree that they will be hiking for.
Keener is hiking for daughter Erin, who died at the age of four.
McNally and her friend, Melissa Broadman, will be hiking for six-year-old Shelby Stimpson, whose treatment for acute lymphocytic leukemia recently ended. Stimpson’s dad is also participating in the hike.
‘We’ve been hiking every Sat. since Feb. 4,? said Keener, noting that the goal for the Grand Canyon hike is anywhere from six to eight hours of hiking.
The team hiked for four hours at Bald Mountain on April 8, and has five more weeks of training to build up their stamina.
They will depart for Phoenix on June 1, and hike in the Grand Canyon on the morning of June 3.
Neither Keener or McNally has been to the Grand Canyon before, but both are excited to experience it in a way that most people never get a chance to.
‘Very few people actually get beyond the rim of the Canyon,? Keener said. ‘That’s what I’m looking forward to.?
The pair also looks forward to hiking in a warmer climate.
‘We’ve been hiking in the snow, and it’s been cold and miserable,? said McNally.
She noted that as the weather has gotten warmer, one benefit has been seeing the great parks and trails that the area has to offer.
But hiking in the Grand Canyon will be the ultimate in scenery.
Upon their arrival, the group from Michigan will meet up with other hikers.
‘We will go as a group and meet with groups from five other states,? said Keener, noting that they will hike in groups of 12, and could be placed with members from any of the other groups.
As a National Parks requirement, each group of 12 will be accompanied by two guides. Keener said this could provide for some educational opportunities along the hike.
Of course, the great views from the Grand Canyon are just a bonus to these walkers, whose ultimate goal of helping the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society will already have been accomplished.
The society is the world’s largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research and providing education and patient services.
An estimated 111,000 new cases of blood cancer will be diagnosed nationwide this year, and about half of those patients will die from the disease.
Keener and McNally know firsthand that every little bit helps.
A member of the Navy Reserves, McNally said the hiking experience might lead her to try a half-marathon this fall.
For more information about Hike for Discovery or to make an onlline donation to a participant’s fund, visit www.active.com/donate/hfdmi.