June 26, 2004

Denver Post 
Denver, Colorado

Giant Steps
The Global Walker returns to Colorado

By Caitlin Smith

Polly Letofsky was walking on a "barren highway through a tiny town in northern Australia" when a senior citizen flashed her. As Letofsky tells it, an "eighty-year-old, kind of big woman" hailed her by name and then told her in a heavy Aussie accent that she'd survived a bout with breast cancer nearly forty years earlier. This might have been a perplexing encounter were it not for the fact that Letofsky is known as the "Global Walker," whose goal is to raise breast-cancer awareness worldwide. "She kept talking about 'my boobs' and what a great job the doctors did," Letofsky continues. The woman just had to bust out evidence of her successful treatment, even if it meant showing some octogenarian skin.
Letofsky can have that sort of effect on people. Compelled by the number of women in her life diagnosed with breast cancer, Letofsky set out on foot from her Vail home in August, 1999, headed toward the Pacific Coast to do her part to stomp out the disease. Since then, the Lions Club-sponsored traveler has ambled through more than twenty countries, including New Zealand, India, Singapore and Thailand, striding for heightened awareness and fundraising with local organizations when possible. Now, after nearly five years, her alter ego's mission is almost complete.
Having circled the globe, Letofsky is projected to hit Vail again this August. After that, she'll be done with her nomadic ways and presumably take a break from her travel buddy "Bob," the specially engineered stroller she uses to haul her belongings.
Letofsky is close enough to home to be comforted by the sounds of Colorado. ("It's nice to hear familiar language on the radio, like 'Eisenhower Tunnel' and 'Rocky Flats,'" she says.) But she's still got a few paces -- and places -- to go before she can throw in the worn tennis shoes. To mark her arrival in Denver, the Palm Restaurant, 1672 Lawrence Street, will host a welcome-back-to-Colorado party for Letofsky at noon today. Tickets, $20 to $25, include both non-alcoholic and alcoholic refreshments, as well as a chance to hear stories and see pictures from the Global Walk. Proceeds from the gathering will benefit local nonprofit Sense of Security. -- Caitlin Smith

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