The month’s events kicked off Oct. 2 with the popular “Run for Breast Cancer Awareness” race in San José. More than 12,000 people, all dressed in pink, participated. Funds will be donated to Anasovi and Fundacancer, two organizations working to improve the lives of cancer patients (TT, Sep 16).
The Ana Gabriela Ross Foundation also held its eighth “Walk Against Breast Cancer” on Oct. 8. More than 32,000 people walked or ran from San José’s Parque Central to La Sabana Park, on the capital’s western edge.
“People may think that fundraising is the most important part of these activities, but to us, the main objective is to show that we are concerned about this problem. Last year, almost 300 women died of breast cancer in Costa Rica,” foundation president Fabiola Ross said.
This week, the Costa Rican Social Security System (Caja) also helped raise awareness about breast cancer. In a forum organized by the Caja on Monday, cancer
survivors shared their experiences. Caja doctors were also on hand this week to answer questions and help provide free information to the public.
Activities continue throughout the month to help raise funds. Another race, “Juntos por la cura” (“Together For a Cure”) will be held on Saturday. Proceeds will be donated to the Ana Gabriela Ross Foundation. The race includes 10-kilometer and 5-km runs, and a 2-km walk. The 10-km race starts in front of the National Stadium in La Sabana Park, and the 5-km run and 2-km walk start at Walmart in Escazú, west of San José.
“There are a number of other events, including conferences, workshops, and soccer and tennis tournaments. On Oct. 25 we will donate mammography equipment to the Caja,” Ross said.
“Aprendo por mi Vida” (“I Learn for My Life”) is the last of the month’s races, scheduled for Oct. 23. The race is organized by cosmetics company Avon, and funds will be donated to the national Foundation for Solidarity Against Breast Cancer. Last year, the race generated more than ₡15 million ($29,000) for the organization.
The Costa Rican Railroad Institute is supporting efforts by dressing trains in pink to encourage early detection. The Pink Movement program, organized by supermarket chain Automercado, is also hosting a number of activities this weekend.
Walkers of all ages will salute those who have battled or are battling breast cancer when they take to the loop around Settlers' Green Sunday morning, Oct. 16, for the American Cancer Society's 19th annual North Conway Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk.
It's all part of the society's National Breast Cancer Awareness month.
Registration for the walk will open at 9 a.m. at the North Conway Staples parking lot; opening ceremonies are at 10 a.m.; and the 3.5-mile walk will begin immediately following. For more information, call local ACS community executive Kathy Metz at 356-3719 or the American Cancer Society at 1-800-227-2345.
(A Jen's Friends Pancake Breakfast will be presented by the local Masonic Lodge at its facility on Main Street North Conway prior to the walk for the benefit of that local cancer fighting organization, which serves 56 local cancer patients, including several breast cancer patients, according to vice president Wendy Holmes. Walkers are encouraged to “fuel up” at that event prior to making the walk from Staples, notes oncology nurse Roxanne Major of Memorial Hospital.)
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According to Metz, the local community executive for the American Cancer Society, “Making Strides Against Breast Cancer” is the American Cancer Society’s premier event to raise awareness and funds to fight breast cancer.
More than just the name of a walk, she said Making Strides describes the progress the society is making to help defeat this disease. The money raised is used to fund research as well as provide local programs of early detection and service to patients and their families.
“This is my seventh Making Strides; it started in Boston, North Conway and a few other communities in 1993,” said Metz, who notes that 450 walkers raised $78,500 last year alone in North Conway.
She said she does not have statistics for how much the North Conway event has raised since its start locally, but she said that nationwide, Making Strides has raised $400 million since its inception, with nearly 800,000 walkers raising $60 million in 2010.
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'Bartenders for Boobs'
Twenty-five teams had registered as of Oct. 14 for this year's North Conway walk, with Metz hoping to have a total of 500 walkers come Sunday.
Returning this year is the top local fund-raising team of Bartenders for Boobs, captained by Lisa “BB” Brunelle.
According to the local American Cancer Society website, Brunelle and her legion of bartenders as of Oct. 14 had raised $4,825 toward their goal of $10,000, with Brunelle — a former teacher, Mud Bowl Hall of Famer volunteer and an employee of Attitash Mountain Village — having raised $2,790 toward her individual goal of $4,000. (Donations may be made by contacting her via e-mail at bartronbb@yahoo.com.)
Both in an interview and on the American Cancer Society website, Brunelle said she gets involved in memory of her late sister and others whose lives have been impacted by cancer, especially breast cancer.
“I first became involved in Making Strides in 2003,” writes the ever-buoyant Brunelle. “At the time, ACS statistics claimed that one in four women would develop breast cancer. As the oldest of four sisters, the odds were against us; my sister Loree developed the disease. After hearing that teams were wanted to participate in the local Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk, Bartenders for Boobs was formed.”
As a long-time former bartender in the Mount Washington Valley, Brunelle went to her many friends in the bartending business to ask for their help.
“Their reponse was wonderful! The boys at Amoskeag Beverages and Miller Lite also offered to help, providing the bartenders with T-shirts and hats. Restaurant and bar owners have shown their support over the years as well, with drink menus, various promotions, and by allowing their bartenders to wear the Bartenders for Boobs T-shirts instead of their regular uniforms,” writes Burnelle.
With the exception of one year, Bartenders for Boobs has been the top fund-raising team in Mount Washington Valley since its inception.
“There are a great bunch of people involved; bartenders like Carl Farnum of the Red Parka, who puts on his T-shirt every September; Ken Derouin of the [recently closed] Up Country, wearing a bra outside his shirt, and letting his patrons stuff it with bills; Anthony and Ashley at Tuckerman's Tavern, and Amber at Matty B's, selling cards that hang in the bar; Billy MacFarlane of The 1785, charging a 'buck a boob' surcharge in his football pool — the list goes on and on — and great patrons, like Lisa BB's Mud Bowl Family, who has tossed over $1,000 into the Tips bucket for the past several years. With the help of fellow bartenders from near and far, our patrons, friends, and families, we have raised over $50,000 to fight this dreadful disease.”
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