Danville Native Raising Money to Fight Cancer That Killed Her Mother

When Niki Litman of Danville was first diagnosed with breast cancer, it appeared she would beat it. She had a stage 2 breast cancer and the prognosis was good. But the cancer proved resilient and on April 9, 2011 she died.

It was the second tragedy in less than a year for the Litman family. Ben Litman, 19, the son of Niki, died in connection to a home fire at the Litman residence in Blackhawk on June 22, 2010.

As Niki's cancer progressed after Ben's death, Riva Litman, Niki's daughter, returned home from her job in Washington D.C. to help care for her ailing mother.

"A few days before she passed away, she looked at my dad and asked, 'Why is this happening? Why didn't the treatments work? I thought I would live to be old with you,'" Riva wrote.  "As I sat beside her in those final days, I promised her that one day I would do something to make sure other women wouldn't lose their lives to breast cancer the way she did."

Riva is keeping that promise. On May 4 and 5, Riva is walking in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in Washington D.C. and like all the walkers in raising money for the two-day, 39-mile walk.

But unlike most of the walkers, Riva is raising tens of thousands of dollars. After posting her fundraising page on March 19, Riva has raised $29,555 as of Wednesday.

At first, Riva thought it would be ambitious of her to raise $3,500, about twice as much that walkers are asked to raise. But after Riva sent an email to friends and family asking for donations the $3,500 threshold was met in just a couple of hours.

"It's been really surprising," Riva said. "It went to $3,500, to $5,000, to 7, 10, 15, 20 and 25. My goal now is to get to $40,000."

Riva is humbled by the support from her family and friends and she realizes these donations aren't just a nice gesture, but the money wil have a real impact on real people.

"I have witnessed cancer and what a terrible disease it is," Riva said. "If I could raise money to help just get one women to get a mamagram, which could find cancer early and give her 40 years instead of two years, it would be worth it. I'm trying to find some good in this and prevent other families from going through what we did."

You can donate to Riva by clicking the "Donate Now" button on this page.