In My Pajamas Show  

Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Randi Passoff  is the Founder and Executive Director of It’s The Journey, Inc., a 501 (c) (3) non profit, formed in 2002 to raise money and awareness for the Atlanta Breast Cancer community. It’s The Journey, Inc., has as its major fundraiser, The Atlanta 2-Day Walk for Breast Cancer (2-Day). Randi Passoff knows a few things about breast cancer - she is a two-time breast cancer survivor.

Randi’s vision was to form a local non-profit organization that would raise money and awareness for the Atlanta Breast Cancer community and be financially responsible, with the emphasis on keeping all the monies raised in the Atlanta community and giving back a large percentage.

Prior to founding the 2-Day, Randi helped her husband in his restaurant, held board positions with the Susan G. Komen Foundation’s Race for the Cure; St. Joseph’s Medical Center Cancer Network; local breast cancer support group Breast Friends, as well as a weekly visiting schedule with cancer patients at Saint Joseph’s Medical Center. A four-year participant on the Avon 3-Day, Randi also helped as a training walk leader and speaker on the Avon speaker’s bureau doing orientations and fundraising events. Randi has also run Can You Imagine a World Without Breast Cancer.com, an internet site used to raise money for breast cancer. For her hard work in the community, she won the 3rd annual “Magnolia Award”, presented by Breast Friends for her unwavering dedication and friendship.

In addition to her work in breast cancer, Randi has been an official for swimming, volleyball and gymnastics. She owned an exercise studio which taught aerobics, karate and preschool gymnastics. Randi was also involved with the Atlanta Olympics, helping in the Village with all of the athletes’ transportation problems because of her knowledge of Atlanta.

Randi is a native Atlantan who lives in the Sandy Springs area with her husband, Carl. They have been married for 36 years. They have three children, Michael, Lon and Stephanie, as well as three grandchildren, Ally, Jacob and Payton. Randi has studied at Kent State, where she was on gymnastics scholarship, and DeKalb College. Her studies were cut short when she, “met Carl, got married and had Michael before I finished school.”

Randi said to tell everyone that her vision is working, thanks to all of the hard work from the 2-Day volunteers and staff and the wonderful Atlanta business community. It’s The Journey, Inc., has raised $1.6 million in just its first three years, and has given 31 gifts and grants to Breast Cancer organizations in and around the Atlanta community.