Finding a cure now...so our daughters won't have to.

Posts Tagged ‘breast cancer’

Swinging for the Fences in Williamsport

Posted By on July 27th, 2012 at 3:47 pm | 0 comments.

On Tuesday, July 24th, Take a Swing Against Breast Cancer® rolled into Historic Bowman Field, home of the Williamsport Crosscutters, for the 5th annual home run derby. Batters, volunteers and fans came out on this sticky summer morning to support the PA Breast Cancer Coalition and our efforts to fight breast cancer across the state. Check out the list of teams below, and we hope to see you out at the ballpark in Williamsport next year!

 

Special thank you to all the media partners who came out to the event, including WNEP Channel 16, WBRE-TV and the Williamsport Sun-Gazette. Check out the video clip from WBRE here. Additionally thanks to the staff at the Crosscutters and our great volunteers who stayed throughout the entire day!  View all of our photos from the Williamsport Derby here. Next up: Lancaster on Saturday, July 28! Follow us @PBCC for live tweets during game days!

Competition Heats Up in Washington

Posted By on July 26th, 2012 at 5:10 pm | 0 comments.

The sun was out as our teams, individual batters and an abundance of volunteers gathered on July 20th at the Washington Wild Things at Consol Energy Park. The 5th derby of the season kicked off with local Representatives Brandon Neuman and Robert Matzie going head to head to see which team would claim official bragging rights over the other. They decided that the losing team would have to wear the pink boa on the House floor in order to bring awareness to the Take a Swing Against Breast Cancer® competition.  With the help of 8 home runs (7 coming from one batter alone!), Neuman’s Crew won for the second consecutive year, and Rob Matzie will soon be seen publicly in the pink boa, all in the name of breast cancer awareness!

Thanks to all of our teams and spectacular volunteers at the Washington Wild Things. Check out the lineup of teams and individual batters below:

And our home run hitters included:

Congratulations to batter Bill Klenoshek, who is currently our overall individual batter winner with 675 points and of course our 7-home-run-batter Joe Oliphant!  Thank you to everyone who came out to the Washington Derby, and special thanks to the staff at Consol Energy Park for your support and entertainment throughout the day! Our volunteers truly appreciated the dance music in between batters! Everyone that was there made this a very energetic, silly and successful event for the PBCC. View all the photos from our day at the ballpark here.

Rain Doesn’t Dampen Batters’ Appetite for Home Runs at the Erie SeaWolves

Posted By on July 24th, 2012 at 10:08 pm | 0 comments.

Erie BattersOn Thursday, July 19, the PA Breast Cancer Coalition’s 5th Annual Take a Swing Against Breast Cancer® traveled all the way to Jerry Uht Park in Erie, Pa with 13 teams, 3 individual batters and a handful of energetic volunteers. The day began bright and dry, but gave way to a little rain in the afternoon. That didn’t stop 5 determined batters from rolling up their sleeves and hitting it out of the park for breast cancer! Thanks to everyone who came out to cheer on the teams and to our great volunteers who even stood out in the rain to shag balls and clean up the field with us! Your support truly made for a successful home run derby! Congratulations to all of the teams and batters, check out their scores below:

Congratulations as well to all of our home run hitters:

Erie SeaWolvesView all of the day’s photos at the Erie SeaWolves here. It was a fantastic day despite the weather as we raised awareness and funds for breast cancer survivors throughout the state. Special thanks to the great staff and management at the Erie SeaWolves, the PBCC staff loves their pink SeaWolves hats! Check out coverage of the event on GoErie.com and stay tuned for our next blog update! Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter (@PBCC) for live updates from each derby. Until next time!

 

Breaking Records at the Reading Phillies

Posted By on July 18th, 2012 at 12:58 pm | 0 comments.

Temperatures were rising in Reading, but despite the heat, the First Energy Stadium was the setting of a record-breaking 21 home runs at our third home run derby of the season, including an incredible 8 individual home runs from John Furlong and 5 individual home runs from Kevin Becker. A total of 13 teams and 27 volunteers, along with 3 individual batters came out to the Reading Phillies to Take a Swing Against Breast Cancer® with the PA Breast Cancer Coalition.

Check out the batting totals for the day, along with the list of home run hitters:

Home Run Hitters:

Special thanks to all of our batters & volunteers, as well as the energetic friends, family and coworkers who came out to cheer on the teams. Even Screwball came out to show his support for breast cancer awareness!  Together, you made the day a huge success. Additional thanks to the incredible staff at the Reading Phillies for their help in putting this day together, and to our media partners of Blue Ridge Cable 11 news for covering the event.  View all of the Reading photos here. Next stop: Erie SeaWolves on Thursday! Remember to follow us live on Twitter (@PBCC) for live coverage of all of our home run derby events.

 

Gloria Ferri – Survivor Spotlight, Carbon County

Posted By on July 18th, 2012 at 9:59 am | 0 comments.

I was 60 years old when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I thought it couldn’t happen to me. That was 22 years ago. My doctor had scheduled a mammogram for me and that mammogram saved my life. I wouldn’t have known about the cancer until it was too late. Sometimes women tell me that they don’t want to have a mammogram because they’re afraid it will hurt. I tell them that one little hurt is going to save you a big one later on.

When I was first diagnosed, Pat Halpin-Murphy hadn’t created the PA Breast Cancer Coalition yet. But once it got started, the PBCC invited me to represent Carbon County in the traveling photo exhibit. I agreed right away. I’m always willing to help with anything. I know that Pat and the PBCC have been working tirelessly and will always keep going to help other women.

Through surgery and radiation treatments, I had faith. And I kept my sense of humor and kept busy. That will get you through difficult times. I love to crochet and have made many bride dolls, and I wanted to do something special for the PBCC. So I made a pink doll and attached 67 roses to the train to represent the women in the 67 counties from the exhibit, and I added pink beads in memory of those we have lost. I was happy to be able to present the doll to Pat at the recent exhibit opening at the Hazelton Health & Wellness Center. Quite a few friends have asked me to make one for them but I won’t make another one like it. It’s one of a kind, just like Pat is.

Over the years I’ve seen a lot of changes, like digital mammograms and other advances. I see many more women getting mammograms now and talking openly about their breast cancer. It’s really good to see that.

Hazleton Hosts 67 Women, 67 Counties: Facing Breast Cancer in Pennsylvania

Posted By on July 18th, 2012 at 9:58 am | 0 comments.

The Hazleton Health and Wellness Center hosted the 67 Women, 67 Counties: Facing Breast Cancer in Pennsylvania traveling photo exhibit last month. An opening reception featuring a number of speakers kicked off the exhibit’s stay in Luzerne County. The reception concluded with a moving recognition of all breast cancer survivors in attendance.

Joining Pat Halpin-Murphy in speaking at the exhibit were Jim Edwards, CEO of the Greater Hazleton Health Alliance, Joanne Grossi, regional Director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; State Senator John Yudichak, State Representative Tarah Toohil, and breast cancer survivor and Luzerne County exhibit participant Beverly Hernandez.

Supreme Court Upholds Healthcare Law

Posted By on July 18th, 2012 at 9:56 am | 0 comments.

The recent Supreme Court decision upheld major provisions of the Affordable Care Act. What does this mean for women with breast cancer? Now, any new health plan must provide mammograms without any cost to the patient. Starting in 2014, the following provisions go into effect:

-          No pre-existing conditions

  • Insurers will no longer be able to exclude breast cancer survivors from coverage or charge them a higher premium by defining breast cancer as a pre-existing condition.

-          No caps

  • Insurance companies cannot impose lifetime caps now or starting in 2014 annual dollar caps.

-          No cancellation

  • Insurers can no longer cancel a breast cancer survivor’s insurance policy when she or he gets sick and needs it most.

Countdown to the PBCC Conference

Posted By on July 18th, 2012 at 9:55 am | 0 comments.

The countdown to the PA Breast Cancer Coalition Conference is on! With less than 100 days to go until we gather at the Harrisburg Hilton on Tuesday, October 9th to officially kick off our 20th year, there has never been a better time for YOU to get involved! We have many great opportunities for individuals and businesses to make a big impact at our conference.

New this year is an individual fundraising opportunity – which allows you the chance to spread the word about the PBCC to friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues while raising funds to help us continue our work for breast cancer survivors and their families. Those who raise additional funds will receive additional PBCC merchandise.

There are many great sponsorship opportunities still available for those businesses and individuals who want to get involved with the conference and reach out to the nearly 1,000 attendees that are expected. Check out the opportunities still available.

5th Annual Home Run Derby a Hit at the Harrisburg Senators

Posted By on July 13th, 2012 at 9:12 am | 0 comments.

Harrisburg BattersOnce again, Harrisburg brought our largest Take a Swing Against Breast Cancer® home run derby with 26 teams, 1 single batter and over 35 energetic volunteers! On Tuesday, July 10th, we kicked off the 5th annual home run derby season at the Harrisburg Senators’ Metro Bank Stadium where people of all ages came out to enjoy this exciting day. Special thanks to the Harrisburg Senators staff and everyone who made this day such a success!

Take a look at our high scores and team photos from our first of eight across the state this year:

 

Thanks again for your support! Stay tuned to see if we get any home runs at our next location: York Revolution’s Sovereign Bank Stadium! View all of the Harrisburg photos here.

Go PINK at Pocono Promotes Breast Cancer Education and Early Detection

Posted By on June 22nd, 2012 at 9:52 am | 0 comments.

For Immediate Release
June 22, 2012

For PA Breast Cancer Coalition:
Heather Hibshman, 717-721-2580
For The Martel Group:
Rob Ziemba, 717-480-8610

Harrisburg, Pa. – The summer heat of August may be three months away — but a new fundraising partnership is already burning up the pavement for a statewide non-profit organization. The PA Breast Cancer Coalition (PBCC) recently teamed up with Lebanon-based Bill Martel Racing to promote breast cancer awareness and education at the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Pocono Mountain 125 and The Pennsylvania ARCA 125 – Presented by Menard’s. These events will take place during the first weekend of August at The Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, PA.

Go Pink at Pocono benefits the PA Breast Cancer Coalition and event organizers are searching for supporting sponsors to join them in victory lane. Multiple sponsorship levels are available and include race car and race truck logos, event tickets, pit tours, driver meet-and-greets and more! Inaugural Go Pink at Pocono race t-shirts will also be for sale and are sure to be a hit. Race veteran Kyle Martel of Lebanon will drive one-of-a-kind pink vehicles during two events at the Pocono Raceway.

“This unique event will take the message of breast cancer awareness and early detection to thousands of Pennsylvania families,” said Pat Halpin-Murphy, president and founder of the PBCC. “We are extremely grateful to Bill Martel Racing for joining forces with the PBCC.”

“We are both honored and excited to promote the PBCC at one of the most visible races in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series – and for one of the best causes in Pennsylvania,” said Rob Ziemba, V.P. Sales and Marketing for Bill Martel Racing and The Martel Group. “The winner will be the PBCC because the money stays in Pennsylvania.”

Ziemba concluded by saying “we are racing for a reputable Pennsylvania organization and have the right race team and driver in place to help raise as much money and awareness as we can. We want to cross the finish line with the PBCC and do our part to help find a cure for breast cancer now…so our daughters won’t have to.” 

To sponsor Go Pink at Pocono, and to request additional information, please contact Rob Ziemba at rziemba@hanovercoldstorage.net. For more information about Bill Martel Racing, visit www.kylemartel.com.

The PBCC represents, supports and serves breast cancer survivors and their families in Pennsylvania through educational programming, legislative advocacy and breast cancer research grants. The PBCC is a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to finding a cure now…so our daughters won’t have to. For information call 800-377-8828 or visit www.PABreastCancer.org.

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