LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) Thousands of men, women and kids go pink today and flooded downtown Little Rock.
Saturday marks the 19th annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.
This year's theme is "Run as One." We know every person walking Saturday had a personal story or knew somebody who was fighting breast cancer.
"I was at home by myself with my dog when I got the call. She said I got good news and I got bad news. I sad give me the bad news. She says it's breast cancer. What's the good news? She says it's very treatable you can do this," says Ashlee Stephens.
That was in 2007. Ashlee and her husband Gabe Stephens have been fighting the disease since. Then another surprise. Her concerns and worries of breast cancer transferred to another family member.
"Then three years later almost to the day my mother was diagnosed with almost the same type of breast cancer," says Ashlee.
Ashlee and her mother caught their breast cancer early and doctors were able to treat it.
"I think one of the advantages she has is staying positive. She never wavered and stayed positive the whole time," says Gabe Stephens.
She earned a medal and ranked 64th in the 5K run overall. And as she ran her heart out in the Race for the Cure, she thinks of all the women who've experienced similar struggles.
"When women get together to raise money, there is no stopping us," says Ashlee.
Participants totaled nearly 38,500 people. That's about a 10 percent decrease from last year, but race officials say Little Rock is still ranked in the top five.