Mother-Daughter Duo Tackle 100 Hikes of Healing and Hope
By Joshua Berman
THIS STORY WAS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN FOR ELEVATION OUTDOORS MAGAZINE IN DECEMBER 2024
January 28, 2025 — At 5 years old, Bellamy Korn, of Timnath, Colorado, was diagnosed with leukemia, stepping onto a path few of us could imagine walking. As the treatments began, Bellamy’s mother, Sarah Bailey, looked for ways to infuse health and positivity into their new journey—she chose hiking.
Sarah and Bellamy set a goal to complete 100 hikes. First of all, says Sarah, “she really needs this, it’s really great for her body and her mind; but also, she is such a badass, and I want her to understand that. She can do it.”
Now 7, with 83 hikes done, Bellamy has inspired an entire community of support. Through Sarah’s Instagram account, @bellamywillwin, they’ve connected with other cancer families and raised awareness about childhood cancer, which Sarah notes, is critically underfunded. “These kids deserve so much more,” she says.
Hike 50, which fell on Mother’s Day, was dedicated to all mothers of young cancer fighters, and since then, each hike has honored a different child. Hike 72 celebrated Paisley, who survived a rare tumor, and 73 was done for Hazel, two years into her fight. “You are all SO TOUGH and strong!” Sarah and Bellamy cheered from the trail (via Instagram Reels).
I had the honor of hiking Number 77 with Sarah, Bellamy, her twin brothers—and @spacex astronaut Sarah Gillis, who had agreed to join Bellamy mere weeks after returning from the historic Polaris Dawn Mission, during which Sarah and her crew orbited the Earth for five days, advancing humanity’s reach into space—and raising money for @stjude and childhood cancer. Wow! At the end of the hike, Sarah G. presented Bellamy with an official Challenge Coin, “Because you are on a very big mission,” the astronaut told the little girl (watch the video below).
Currently, Sarah is trying to work with Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) to see if they can offer free state parks passes for childhood cancer families (reach out to your local representative and ask them to support this). As mom and daughter close in on their 100th hike (and the end of this treatment round), these heroes show us all how strength, love, and connection can be found outside, one step at a time.
FOLLOW SARAH & BELLAMY HERE: https://www.instagram.com/bellamywillwin
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Today I hiked with some real-life heroes: Bellamy, a 7-year-old cancer warrior, who is doing a 100-hike challenge during her leukemia treatment to raise awareness for childhood cancer, which is severely underfunded (follow her adventures at @bellamywillwin). Her mother, Sarah Bailey, and twin brothers were there, and so was Sarah Gillis and her husband, both of whom work for @spacex—Sarah just returned from the historic Polaris Dawn Mission; she and her crew orbited the Earth for five days, advancing humanity’s reach into space—and raising money for @stjude and childhood cancer. At the end of the hike, Sarah presented Bellamy with an official Challenge Coin, “Because you are on a very big mission,” she told her. Bellamy has now completed 77 hikes! Only 23 to go… #colorado #hiking #cancer #childhoodcancer #leukemia #hero #heroes @moonguides @polarisprogram @bellamywillwin @visitboulder #hike #optoutside #health #walking
Listen to Sarah on The Deep C Podcast Episode: “An Uphill Battle – Sarah’s Story of Single Parenting Through Cancer & How Hiking Lead to Healing”:
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THIS STORY WAS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN FOR ELEVATION OUTDOORS MAGAZINE IN DECEMBER 2024
