For the fifth year in a row (and sixth time in the past seven years), Palmer
College of Chiropractic served as the official “chiropractic partner” of the San
Francisco “Komen For The Cure” 3-Day Walk, and the West Campus Sports Council
provided care for hundreds of the more–than–1,400 participants who walked 60
miles the weekend of Sept. 9-11, en route to raising $3.7-million for breast
cancer research and awareness.
West alumni Dr. Brant Pedersen (West, ’04) and Dr.
Beate Teufel (West, ’04) once again served as co-captains of the Palmer team
that included seven other DCs, and 14 Sports Council members (seven interns and
seven students). The three-day event started near the Cow Palace in Daly City,
and concluded at Marina Green in San Francisco.
Conditions were similar to those cared for by Palmer
team members at prior events: lumbar spine/pelvis/hip fixations and muscle
dysfunction; knee, ankle, and foot biomechanical dysfunction; and various muscle
strains. One-third of the walkers cared for the Palmer team were receiving
chiropractic care for the first time, and approximately 15 percent of the
walkers were Komen For The Cure veterans who’d received care from the Palmer
team at prior 3-day events.
“The walkers loved the care they received from our
group of doctors and Palmer students, and they’d come back and ask for them by
name when returning for subsequent visits,” said Dr. Pedersen, a past CCA
Student of the Year honoree, who has served as sports medicine captain or
co-captain of the Palmer team in each of the past five Komen For The Cure
events.
However, Dr.
Pedersen said, “2010 was the best by far.”
“The doctors, interns, observers, and administrative
staff were a wonderful mix of experience, compassion, focus and fun,” said Dr.
Pedersen, of Positive Motion Chiropractic in Los Gatos, Calif.
“I told the interns and
observers that we helped so many people over the three days in an on-site
setting that I wanted to take all of them with me, and go serve around the
world.”
“This event
is incredibly rewarding, and the spirit of the 3-Day carries me through several
months after the event,” says Dr. Teufel, who maintains a practice in San Jose,
and whose mother is a 36-year breast cancer survivor.
“I also crew because I
have seen how chiropractic is able to help the walkers getting through the walk.
When I started as an intern on my first walk in 2003, we helped probably around
150 people, and it was a great event. This year between the first ‘pit stop,’
lunch, and ‘base camp’ we helped close to 1000 walkers. The word is spreading,
patients come even before they are injured to get adjusted, and I am very exited
about it.
“Several
years ago I started this event as an intern, and now I am leading the sports
medical team. It has come full circle for me. I could not be more proud to be a
Palmer West alumna, now that I see where we started seven years ago, and how far
this event has come in promoting chiropractic.”
In addition to Drs. Pedersen and Teufel, other DCs
included: Dr. Pauline Anderson (West, ’90), Dr. Andrew Cohen (West, ’04), Dr.
Lisa Covey, Dr. Dade Donovan, Dr. Barbara Kempeny (West, ’99), Dr. Michael Lord
(West, ’10), and Dr. Sarah Lord (West, ’08).
“I’ve assisted at various Palmer-associated events,
but this is a special event, for the rewarding encounters we experience all
three days,” says Dr. Anderson, associate clinical professor in the West Campus
Clinic.
“We get great
feedback from the walkers, many of whom comment how they couldn’t have completed
the walk without our care. That fills me with a great sense of pride, as a
chiropractor and as a Palmer alumna.”
West Sports Council interns included: Brandon Boothe,
Mike Larson, Adam Meisenhelder, Oliver Sanchez, Trisha Smith, Jeff Word and Zach
Zughschwerdt. Non-intern Sports Council assistants included: Josh Bruce,
Stephanie Coleman, Laurel Cragg, Kayleigh Knudson, Kevin Rose, Mike Smith and
Lisa Viapiano.
Intern
Meisenhelder, president of the West Sports Council, has provided care to
world-class athletes at such prestigious events as the Sea Otter Classic cycling
festival in Monterey, the National Senior Games at Stanford Univ., and the
Escape From Alcatraz triathlon; however, he ranks his participation in providing
care for walkers at the Susan G. Komen 3-Day fundraiser for breast cancer in San
Francisco as “one of my proudest moments as a chiropractic student.”
“We treated the walkers
starting at 6 a.m., with the last treatments at around 9 p.m. The days were long
and difficult; however, being a part of something so big was extremely
satisfying,” said Meisenhelder.
“I’m so glad that Palmer makes this event a priority,”
said Dr. Pedersen.
“A
lot of work goes into planning our participation in the event, which involves
multiple people from Dr. (Greg) Snow in San Jose, to clinic administration in
Davenport. And I can’t say enough about the collective effort of the interns and
assistants, who attend pre-event meetings, assist with preparation of necessary
materials and paperwork, and sleep on the hard ground in cold tents for two
nights.
“But we do
it with style – and a smile. Which makes me proud to be a Palmer grad.”