My committee and I have been working hard for the past 6
months on our event, the Pink Ribbon Project that will be held later this
spring and will benefit the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. I wanted to take
a few minutes to share with you some of the background behind our project. Most
importantly the why & the how but I will throw in the; who, what, when
& where for good measure!
The Why….
Jody Rutherford, the founder of BELA and our Director of
Education & Programming is facing her second battle with Breast Cancer. Jody
‘s passion for Early Childhood Education is the driving force behind BELA and
has allowed our team to provide support and vital services to the children of
Brooks and Area. Jody and her diagnosis
were the first “why” behind this event!
And we have added more along the way…other Moms, sisters &
friends that have been impacted by breast cancer. Its time for us to show our
support to Jody, to other women we know & love and to the Breast Cancer
Foundation by generating monies to go towards research and prevention of this
disease. Through this event, we can show Jody and other women in our
community that we are behind them, that
we will be there to support them, by supporting the Foundation in the important
work that they do, towards creating a future without breast cancer.
For me, my mom’s diagnosis arrived much like how the main at
a fine dining restaurant arrives on your plate. The different components of the
dish intricately layered upon each other in an unexpected and complex fashion.
In this case, fear upon denial, upon anger, upon science & statistics. Watching each member of my family & most
importantly my Mom experience this dish in their own way has been both
heartbreaking and humbling. For me, this is not a balanced dish, it's much too bitter
and is not something I want to experience again.
For me, it can only be tempered by the beauty of a delicate little side
dish called hope!
The How……
I needed to use that little bit of hope to push myself
forward and to push the fear down. To find a way to try to help my Mom and to
help others. My sisters and I put together a committee to work on the event and
didn’t need to look far to find people who like us, are driven to try to make a
difference. I won’t speak for the committee,
as I know you will find them at the event and will allow them to share their
motivation & experience for themselves! But I will say that their vision,
hard work and dedication are unmatched! I appreciate them more than I can say.
Once we had our committee in place we needed to get the ball
rolling on just how to make this vision a reality! The groundwork was of course
already in place, as BELA was incorporated as both a non-profit organization
and a registered charity in 2011 under the umbrella of the Brooks Community Enrichment Foundation. While our organization is dedicated to
enriching the lives of children and families in Brooks and area by providing
innovative preschool programming, we also have a mandate that turns our focus
to supporting other charities that are family centered and / or wellness
related. We strive to support causes that are important to our students, their
families and to the members of our board. So we of course turned our focus to
creating an event that would both, raise funds for the Canadian Breast Cancer
Foundation as well as show our love & support to my Mom and other women in
our community.
First and foremost was to gain the approval of the Canadian
Breast Cancer Foundation. They have been a wonderful resource and support for
us along the way! Because BELA is a charity, we are able to act as a third
party fundraiser for the foundation, with the proceeds of our event going to
them. We hope to make them proud!
We would not be able to host this event without the support
of our sponsors! Some of the sponsors that have come on board are dear friends
of the committee and we could not be more grateful. Sponsor dollars allow us to cover the
expenses associated with the hosting the event and then we are able to put the
maximum amount of revenue towards our final donation.
So now you know the why & the how! I promised to throw
in the rest and so here is what I can tell you so far!
The Who, the What, the When & Where….
The Pink Ribbon Project…..A Night Out in support of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.
Please join us if you want to have an amazing night out with
your friends, family or coworkers! Make a difference while experiencing this
one of a kind event!
Drinks. Dinner. Music. Entertainment. Raffle Prizes &
More.
Saturday, June 21 at the Brooks Campus- Medicine Hat College
Tickets go in sale in just a few short weeks and we will
share more exciting details with the ticket information on May 1. Watch for it
here on the blog as well as on our website, Facebook & Twitter!
- CP
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