Breast Cancer Awareness Month: Boston's Best Ways To Get Your Family Involved

During October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, organizations and charities will launch campaigns and host activities to raise awareness about the disease and support for finding a cure. If you are looking for ways to get your family involved in fundraising and awareness activities, this guide is just for you. Ample national awareness and fundraising campaigns take place right here in Boston.

Date: Sunday, Oct. 14 – 8 a.m.

Sponsored by the American Breast Cancer Society, this annual, family friendly walk takes place at the Department of Conservation and Recreation's Hatch Memorial Shell. Families may form a team and then encourage relatives and friends to sponsor via a donation. After forming a team, tools are available on the website to make sponsorship easy. An outdoor walk near the Hatch Shell and Esplanade during the fall season is a great way to spend the morning all while raising money for charity. The walk is five miles long and may be completed at your own pace. Due to the large number of participants, consider using public transportation to and from the event. The closest T stations are Charles/MGH (Red Line) and Arlington (Green Line). Otherwise, limited parking is available onsite and also underneath the Boston Common.

Related: CBS Coverage of the 2010 Event

20th Annual Race for the Cure Susan G. Komen Foundation
Joe Moakley Park
446 Old Colony Ave.
(Monsignor O'Callaghan Way)
Boston, MA 02127
www.komenmass.org

Price: $30 adults and survivors/$20 younger than 21/$10 children younger than 12 registered as Kids for the Cure
Date: Sunday, Oct. 20 – 10 a.m.

The annual Susan G Komen Foundation Race for the cure is another family friendly run/walk event that takes place at Joe Moakley Park in South Boston. This park is an excellent location for a charity walk event as it offers views of the water from Carson Beach. Using an untimed entry, you and your family can walk the course at your own pace. In addition, children younger than 12 may be registered as Kids for the Cure for $10. With this entry, your little one will receive a custom T-shirt that is sized accordingly. If you cannot participate in person the day of the race, consider the virtual race option, which will allow your family to raise funds and earn commemorative T-shirts all from the convenience of your computer. On the day of the race, parking is available along Monsignor O'Callahan Way and William J Day Boulevard. However, due to the large number of participants, consider public transportation to the JFK UMass T stop (Red Line) and walk to the park from there.

Boston Bakes for Breast Cancer
www.bostonbakesforbreastcancer.org

This local charity organizes an annual bake-off every May that allows hundreds of local restaurants to offer decadent desserts whose sales all raise money for the Dana Farber Cancer Center. By visiting a restaurant during bake week and ordering dessert, you can make a donation to cancer research. While the bake off events are completed by October, your family can opt to host its own bake off. Gather friends and neighbors, open your home and invite others to enjoy the baked goods you and your family have created. Detailed information regarding how to host your own event is available on the Boston Bakes website under 'Host a Bake sale.'

Related: Healthy Diet is Key to Decreasing Breast Cancer Risk