Some of the roughly 300 Moose members and family members who participated in a 1.75-mile walk to raise funds in the fight against breast cancer Saturday, April 18 on the Mooseheart campus. The event was staged by District 2 of the Illinois Moose Association, spearheaded and organized by St. Charles, IL Lodge 1368. With perfect weather, the original estimate of 250 participants swelled to nearly 300, and $10,000 was raised. Click Photo To Enlarge

MOOSEHEART, IL, April 18 – Donna Kunstman doesn’t know if she will see a cure for cancer in her lifetime.

But she is hopeful that cancer will be eradicated someday. Toward that end, Kunstman on Saturday walked alongside fellow members from the St. Charles Moose Lodge in support of breast cancer awareness and research.

Her mother, Dana Ryan, died of breast cancer in 1992 at the age of 54.

Kunstman was one of more than 300 Moose members from 17 Lodges in the area who strolled 1.75 miles across the Mooseheart campus Saturday in support of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

She received plenty of exercise.

“I rode my bike 10 miles here and then I walked the route twice,” Kunstman said.

Even though Tara Stewart had surgery last week to remove a tumor on her ovary, that didn’t keep the 29-year-old Batavia woman from participating in the walk.

Stewart has endometriosis, which is a disease of the female reproductive system.

“It was a little painful because of the surgery, but I wanted to do it,” she said.

Her aunt, Ann Lukach is fighting her second bout of cancer.

“Ten years ago, she survived it and it is back again,” Stewart said. “She has stage 4 breast cancer.”

She admired Lukach’s caring spirit.

“She helps out everyone,” Stewart said.

David Kunstman, president of Illinois Moose Association District 2 and Governor of the St. Charles Lodge, was overwhelmed by the turnout for the event.

“This has exceeded my expectations,” he said. “I was afraid we would only have 150 people.”

He was also pleased that the District was able to raise $10,000 for the event.

“Cancer affects everybody,” he said. “It affects everybody in some form.”