ZM host Bree Tomasel and Dame Susan Devoy are walking 50km around Cornwall Park to raise funds for breast cancer charity Sweet Louise. Photo / Supplied
ZM host Bree Tomasel and Dame Susan Devoy are walking 50km around Cornwall Park to raise funds for breast cancer charity Sweet Louise. Photo / Supplied
ZM’s Bree and Clint host Bree Tomasel is setting out to walk 50km to raise funds for people living with breast cancer in New Zealand - and she has a personal reason for taking part.
The radio host recalls a close friend she knew from playing sport while growing up who lost her mum to the disease.
“She was like a second mum to me, she was just like this warm, motherly figure in my life,” Tomasel tells the Herald.
“She got breast cancer and I watched her battle it for 10 years until it finally got the better of her. She had her breasts removed and she had a million rounds of chemo ... to see it finally take her life, it was something that has sat with me forever.”
So when she was asked whether she’d be interested in helping raise funds for breast cancer charity Sweet Louise, Tomasel thought “it’s the least I can do”.
The charity exists to support Kiwis living with breast cancer and relies completely on donations and funding to provide anything from practical help like grocery delivery to social events and emotional support for families.
ZM host Bree Tomasel and Dame Susan Devoy appeared on Treasure Island together. Photo / Supplied
Tomasel is teaming up with her Treasure Island co-star Dame Susan Devoy to walk 50km around Auckland’s Cornwall Park on Saturday, May 27. And she reveals it was the kindness of a stranger she met online that inspired her to take part.
“It was this woman named Karen, who I’d met probably about two-and-a-half years ago now. I was copping abuse online ... and she actually helped me through some of that,” she shares.
“She has incurable breast cancer and she put a lot of things into perspective for me and we’ve grown this amazing friendship.”
Karen’s story is just one of many, which Tomasel admits are “really tough to see”.
“You just don’t know how lucky you are ... it’s not fair. I just think it’s such bulls***, and it’s something that affects so many people. I don’t think you really realise the magnitude until you start talking to these people.”
“It’s quite a daunting thing to realise how many women - and some men go through it as well - and just how many families it affects,” she notes.
“So, it’s full on. But I think the reason why it’s so important for me and Dame Susan, we’ve talked about it, is just showing that you don’t have to be on their own, and you’re not alone, and people will walk alongside you.
“We might not be able to understand, because unless you’re going through it, you can’t - but we can be there as support and show that you’re not alone.”
The walk itself is no small feat - “it’s going to be pretty bloody tough”.
“We’re gonna have a car parked somewhere where we’ll have food and other things, but we’re gonna try not stop. Because if you stop, I feel like it’d be quite hard to get going again,” says Tomasel, who has been training for nearly two months and has the blisters to show for it.
They’ve done the maths and while squash champion Devoy is hoping to hit 50km in 10 hours, Tomasel thinks that’s “quite ambitious” and is guessing it’ll take at least 12.
The fundraiser kicks off at 7am this Saturday and the pair plan to break for champagne when they hit 30km.
They’ve set a fundraising goal of $10,000 and are up to about $3500 at the time of writing. Those wanting to donate can head to Sweet Louise’s website or 50k May.
“We’re hoping that this walk on Saturday will create a bit more noise and encourage people to donate,” says Tomasel, adding that anyone who wants to take part is welcome to come along.
