“My aunt is my hero,” says Ashlie, a long-time volunteer and fundraiser for the American Brain Tumor Association. “She was more friend and sister than my aunt.”  

Ashlie seeks to honor her Aunt Amy, who passed away from a brain tumor diagnosis in her thirties. 

“She was someone who valued life and the lives of others,” said Ashlie. “That was the essence of Amy. She was a listener. She took time to understand people, loved spending time with them, and supporting them when they needed it.”  

A year following the passing of her aunt, Ashlie and her family organized a walk in her memory that raised more than $10,000. Since then, Amy’s Walk has emerged as a community event attracting others who share a common purpose. 

In the early years of Amy’s Walk, most of the people who attended knew Amy personally. Now, we’ve expanded the number of people who attend and increased the dollars raised to $55,000 since our initial event 13 years ago, but the majority of people who support us never met Amy.”  

Ashlie attributes the growing support to the type of people Amy connected with before her brain tumor diagnosis.  

“Amy was great in finding the extraordinary in the ordinary,” say Ashlie. “She was a positive force who exuberated joy. People were simply attracted to her energy.”  

Amy’s memory continues to guide Ashlie in leading Amy’s Walk. And it’s because Ashlie appreciates the work done by the American Brain Tumor Association that she goes the extra mile to make Amy’s Walk a bigger success than the year before.  

“I believe in the ABTA’s mission. Everyone who works there and everyone who participates in the mission are heroes in my eyes.”

Her hope is that more people get involved in the brain tumor community or the ABTA by donating or volunteering even if they have not been directly impacted by the disease.

“If we unite, we will beat this disease.”