LOUSIVILLE, Ky. — Horse racing may get much of the attention at the Kentucky Oaks, but the day also honors 150 people who have survived or are living with breast or ovarian cancer.
Attendees were dressed in pink and teal attire, recognizing the journeys of survivors with either disease.
"(It was) such an uplifting day, I think, for something really hard to go through with so many people and just to see so many smiles," attendee Jennifer Reger said.
Attendee Maddalena Pentkowski, who is from Arizona, said she was surprised when she learned she would participate.
“I went down the first column, saw my name about a third of the way down ... and then I go, 'Am I seeing my name?'" she said. "It was there, and it was like, 'My god.'"
She said she has been active all her life but noticed changes in her health a few years back.
“When I woke up one morning, I was feeling terrible cramps and the kind of pain that I had never felt before," she said. "I knew something was wrong."
Just months before finding out her diagnosis, she had open heart surgery. Now, two-and-a-half years later, she’s celebrating overcoming that, plus ovarian cancer. She said she was passionate to join the parade.
“I can feel this spirit to not let this disease define us," Pentkowski said.
Other survivors said they were just as excited to be around individuals who knew exactly what they’ve been through.