Good feelings run high at Cantigny cancer walk

Wheaton's Cantigny Park was filled Sunday morning with the kind of celebration that occurs when people band together to do something good.

More than 2,000 people participated in the annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer fundraising walk at Cantigny, organizers said. When the walkers finished, they smiled, laughed, even danced on the Cantigny lawn.

"It's a great feeling," said Dale Lavoy of Oswego, a first-time participant in the walk. "I'm glad I took part in this."

Lavoy was part of a group of walkers from DuPage Medical Group in Naperville. The group completed the 5K walk in honor of two co-workers who've survived breast cancer, but Lavoy had some additional motivation.

"My sister had breast cancer - she's a survivor," he said. "Anything you can do to help is important."

Roughly 2,000 people registered for the walk in advance, but organizers said they expect the total number of participants was somewhere between 2,500 and 3,000. Interest level was so high that the parking lot at Cantigny Park was completely filled.

"The participation this year was excellent, even more than we expected," said Julie Lorenz of the American Cancer Society, which organized the event. "All of the DuPage County communities around here were so supportive."

Sunday's walk raised at least $251,569, according to early figures posted on the event's website.

It was a great morning for the walk - brisk and sunny. Many walkers wore pink shirts, scarves, even feathered boas to show their support for the cause.

Kalei DeJesus, a sophomore at Streamwood High School, completed the walk with several school friends. They were part of the team fielded by AIT Worldwide Logistics.

"I loved when we finished and saw all the booths here doing something for charity," DeJesus said. "It made me so glad I got involved."