The Queen’s Bees are busy. Busy walking. Busy fundraising. Busy raising awareness for a disease that claims the lives of more Americans than breast cancer, colon cancer and prostate cancer combined.

Maureen Welborn, 73, was diagnosed with Stage 1B lung cancer in 2014. She and her daughter, Kara, had both had bronchitis and, while Kara’s bronchitis cleared up, Maureen’s cough didn’t go away. At first, doctors found nothing. After a chest X-ray was ordered, the reason for the persistent cough was determined — it was lung cancer.

Maureen got the call about her diagnosis on a Friday afternoon, pulling over to the side of the road to hear the news.

“I sat on a side street talking to him [my doctor] and I said, ‘Is this is death sentence?’ I remember saying that to him. He said, ‘I’m going to be honest with you; yes it could be,’” said Maureen.

She took the weekend to collect her thoughts and waited until Monday to tell her children about the diagnosis.

“I sat there on that side street for a good 10-15 minutes and had my own little pity party,” said Maureen. “I just kind of shut myself off from everybody and just thought about a million, million things. I had my pity party. I finally figured out I’m going to live, I’m going beat this, so why am I sitting here being like this, because it’s not me. I’m a fighter. I’m a go-getter.”

Doctors at Northwest Community Hospital removed the tumor and half of Maureen’s right lung. She had one round of chemotherapy, but it made her so ill that doctors decided to discontinue the treatment. She underwent pulmonary therapy at Northwest Community Hospital’s Wellness Center as well. Today, Maureen is in remission and goes through routine testing to screen for cancer. She uses an oxygen tank to help her breathe, though she doesn’t need it as constantly as before.

Maureen, a longtime resident of Buffalo Grove, is known around the village as the “Queen of Buffalo Grove” because she is so active in the community. She said the nickname stuck so well that a neighbor once painted a crown on her chimney to identify her house.

In 2015, a year after Maureen was diagnosed, a friend whose mother had died from lung cancer asked Kara to walk with her in the American Lung Association’s LUNG FORCE Walk to raise awareness about the disease. Kara discussed it with Maureen, who thought that it might be fun to get a team together. The walk was the perfect opportunity to get their community involved with the cause and put their fundraising skills to use.

“Everything was done over Facebook,” said Kara, 46, and a Buffalo Grove resident. “It was just putting our story out there and people having the love and respect for my mom and wanting to help.”

They called their team “The Queen’s Bees” in honor of Maureen’s nickname. Instead of wearing the teal-colored race T-shirts, they donned bee attire with their team name proudly displayed on their shirts. After the race, they were presented with the award for most inspirational team.

Maureen herself walked the first two miles of three-mile walk. Her team pushed her in a wheelchair for the remaining mile she wasn’t strong enough to complete on her own.

They had nearly 30 walkers on The Queen’s Bees team in 2015 and raised $5,073 for the cause. They did so well for an individual team, in fact, that the

American Lung Association sought advice from The Queen’s Bees on how teams could fundraise for upcoming races.

“The more we promote this and the more we support it, the more awareness comes and the more it’s in people’s minds,” said Kara.

The Queen’s Bees wanted to increase fundraising for the 2016 walk, which took place on Sept. 26 in Oak Brook. They again used Facebook to spread the word about their fundraising efforts. At first, Kara said it was harder to raise money for the second walk. She said people had already given in 2015 and getting them to donate again was difficult at times.

So she and her mother got creative. They ran an online drawing, offering four items to winning donors. For every person who donated $10 to the cause, his or her name was added to the drawing to win a $100 Visa gift card, two rounds of golf at the Buffalo Grove Golf Course, a portable patio smoker for meats and a Chicago Bears lawn chair, or a cooler full of the winner’s favorite beer.

The idea worked. The Queen’s Bees had 35 walkers and raised $5,360 this year, second only to the team from Northwestern Medicine. Maureen’s doctor, Dr. Neeraj Desai and his wife walked on her team this year.

“That just meant the world to me,” said Maureen.

Kara placed second for top donations from an individual, and Maureen placed ninth in the same category. Fundraising, however, isn’t all the walk is about. It’s also about raising awareness for a disease that affects many Americans. Kara said that several friends have quit smoking, as did a young man who walked with The Queen’s Bees, because of what her mother has endured.

“He said his last day of smoking would be the day before the walk. As of right now, he hasn’t smoked,” said Kara.

Just a few weeks ago, Maureen spoke at Northwest Community Hospital’s “Shine a Light on Lung Cancer” night, to give those recently diagnosed and their families motivation and support for the journey ahead.

“Don’t despair. Even on the worst days, there’s hope. There’s always hope,” said Maureen. “Keep a positive mental attitude and surround yourself with positive people.”

In her spare time, Maureen enjoys playing Words with Friends and connecting with others on Facebook. She’s still active in the community. She’s on the Buffalo Grove Days committee, an event she chaired for several years.

The Queen’s Bees plan to participate in the LUNG FORCE walk next year, with the goal of raising even more money than they did in 2015 and 2016.

The emotional support from Maureen’s friends and family, combined with her medical care seem to be paying off. Maureen walked the entire three miles of the LUNG FORCE walk this year — no wheelchair required.