Tina and I met in 2003 when her 1st cousin Joe and I became a couple and decided to get married. I knew from the moment I met Tina we were going to be great friends and of course cousins by marriage. When I found out Tina had breast cancer it really made me sad and angry at the same time. My first instinct was to find a way to help, not only Tina but all women who have this disease.
In November of 2008 my husband and I met Tina and her family in Austin and participated in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer walk. I had never been to a breast cancer walk before and it was an experience I will never forget, especially because Tina just found out her cancer had come back. When I returned to Houston I immediately started looking for walks here to participate in. This is when I found the Network of Strength Walk to Empower event on Mother’s Day. I decided to start a team in Tina’s honor and invite all the family and everyone else I knew, so Tina’s Texas Team was born. I really could not have asked for a better group of people to be with on Mother’s Day. Our entire family came along with several friends. We had t-shirts made, which my co-captain Jenny’s husband designed the logo for and Connie and her husband made the t-shirts at a very low cost to all of us, which was a blessing. It really was a group effort and the walk day was priceless.
Over 30 people showed up to honor Tina and did I mention that our shirt won 1st place in the t-shirt contest! Jenny and I made signs and held them up while we walked and Tina’s Texas Team definitely made a huge impact at the walk that day. 
Tina is my inspiration every day, when I got up extra early the day of the walk and met walkers that complained about being there early on a Sunday or walking the three miles, I reminded them that they could have it worse, they could wake up with cancer everyday. So next time you have a bad day, think about Tina and all other women who wake up and have to battle cancer everyday of their lives. I do!--Debi Anderson
I'd like to thank Jon who designed the logo. If you need graphic design, please contact him.
If you want to write a story about Tina for me to post, let me know. We'd all like to hear about your experiences together.
