In the last five years, young swimmers on the Shark Tank Racing Squad have seen one family lose a mother from breast cancer and another’s grandmother diagnosed.

“It speaks to the kids,” said Shark Tank coach Patty Friedman. “They need to learn what inflammatory breast cancer is; you don’t find it on a mammogram. To see a child, have someone ripped out of your hands before you can even process it, they really get it.”

Friedman, who has raised money and participated in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer for the last 8 years, regularly quizzes her swimmers on what inflammatory breast cancer is and encourages them to spread the knowledge. “There’s few of us who haven’t been directly touched by it,” she said.

Five years ago after she returned from an Avon walk, at practice her swimmers asked her about it. Then they asked if they could get involved the following year. What followed was an event where swimmers each raised money to sponsor them completing a three-mile marathon. The money was then pooled with Friedman’s own contribution to breast cancer research.

The meters and dollars have kept piling on, year after year. Prior to the start of the 2015 swim marathon, held March 1 at South Run RECenter, Friedman announced the donation total for this year’s effort: $23,200. Over the five years, the team has raised $78,000 and logged one million meters, adding 270,000 this year.

Riley Allison of Fairfax participated in his second swim marathon with Shark Tank this year, along with 51 other swimmers. The Robert Frost Middle School eighth grader “went the extra mile” and swam 4 miles instead of three.

“It’s great to let people know how bad the disease really is,” said Allison. “I didn’t know about it, but then learned a lot for a Civics project. Everyone in America knows someone with it.”

Ann-Marie Boland of West Springfield has three granddaughters on the team, Nora, Devin and Anna Surbey. She was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 70 in May 2014 and has undergone 6 chemotherapy sessions and 6 weeks of radiation. Her final radiation session was scheduled for the day after the marathon. Friedman introduced her as the event’s spokesmodel.

“They swim for me, but I would be happy if they didn’t have to,” said Boland. “I’m honored and proud of everyone on this team and the coaches.”

Shark Tank’s head coach Lance Page of Burke said the marathon event works on numerous levels as he and the coaches develop both swimmers and young adults.

“It’s about what it brings out in the kids, the discipline, the fortitude,” he said. “It’s a journey. And to sponsor cancer research and give back to the community, seeing the kids wanting to give back through their gift of swimming -- we’re making them whole people and contributing citizens.”

South County junior Moira LeMay and Westminster School seventh grader Ella Rose Friedman reflected on the marathon after LeMay completed her three miles.

“As a high school student, this was the biggest way I could help out,” said LeMay.

“My mom’s been telling me about giving back my whole life,” said Friedman. “I know different people haven’t been able to live as great a life as I have, so I love to give back.”

To find out more about Patty Friedman’s efforts in the Avon Walk or donate, visit www.tinyurl.com/tank2015.