Hooray! The Race is Tomorrow!

It’s a day like today that makes me realize I absolutely did the right thing by volunteering to chair the 2010 Race for the Cure. It’s the Friday before the Race and there is so much excitement, enthusiasm and emotion. It’s all come down to this – and it’s incredible.

• As I hugged my kids this morning I was reminded of a funny story of my daughter. I took Bailey to one of the executive committee meetings this year and when I introduced her I said I was involved with Race for the Cure so that “when Bailey gets boobies we’ll have a cure for breast cancer.” She was terribly embarrassed – and mortified because I said she was going to have boobies. It just made me smile.
• Then, I walked into the warehouse and packet pick-up to hear that our numbers are at 40,041 – and registration is still open (actually open Race Day through Apr. 24), so that number will continue to rise. Thanks to everyone who is taking time out of their Saturday morning to walk, run or sleep-in for the Cure.
• I passed by the fundraising table to hear that fundraising is up 36% from last year, which is incredible – that’s more mammograms and breast cancer educational programs and services Komen Indianapolis can fund in Central Indiana. Thanks to everyone who has contributed to such an incredible cause.
• I stopped by the merchandise corner only to see that MainGate brought out even more cool stuff. Thanks to them for their partnership. Up to 25% from sales comes back to Komen.
• I was interviewed by Fox 59 and learned that they want to come down to the Race and cover the event. We have a great media partner with WTHR, but it’s great to know that both WISH TV and FOX 59 have contacted us and are interested in promoting the Race. Thanks to our friends in the media for raising awareness of the event and the cause.
  

And here’s where it all comes full circle … I opened my e-mail to find a message from a college friend who just discovered that his wife has been diagnosed with breast cancer. He was asking if I could call him after the Race to talk about available resources for his wife and family -- and ways he could get involved.

I can’t wait to see what the rest of the day – and tomorrow will bring.

(by the way, I'm so excited that my talented friend, Tana Lopez Younger, flew in from DC to document the Race. Stop by next week to see her pictures and hear about the Race.)

Komen Indy Counts on Kroger!

(blog entry submitted by our friends at Kroger)


Kroger’s commitment to the Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure is far-reaching. In addition to hundreds of event volunteers and race participants, Kroger makes a significant financial contribution which will build on our nearly $600,000 donated in recent years.


One of our most inspiring initiatives involves students from our partner school, IPS School 46. IPS students and volunteers from UPS will help Kroger prepare tens of thousands of food bags for race participants. The bags include healthy, nutritious food donated by Kroger. This is an important part of Kroger’s efforts to teach important life lessons to our classroom buddies at School 46.

Kroger is also providing Walnut Grove Spring Water to participants at a water station near the finish line and along the course. In addition, the American Dairy Association is joining Kroger to provide chocolate milk to all race participants after they cross the finish line. And our pharmacists will staff an information booth to highlight pro-active wellness efforts.

Kroger associates working during the event have the option of buying a “Race for the Cure” T-shirt and wearing it in their Kroger store on race day as a show of support.


Kroger is proud to be a national sponsor for the Race for the Cure, contributing nearly $4 million nationally to breast cancer research. We look forward to supporting our Kroger associates who are survivors as well as our customers participating this year. Kroger’s division president says he is personally very inspired by every single survivor who will walk in the event.

Turning the Town Pink

As the chairperson for the 2010 Komen Indy Race for the Cure, I get to do some pretty cool things, work with incredible volunteers and I get to see first-hand all of the support that comes from corporations, organizations and individuals. The latest support comes in the form of businesses participating in Paint the Town Pink.

In 2005, Komen incorporated Paint the Town Pink into its annual Race. It was designed to help businesses raise awareness of the Race and breast cancer to their employees and patrons. It also was a unique way for businesses to support Komen. This year, more than 20 Paint the Town Pink entries have been submitted - all of which will be judged over the next few days (winners to be announced Apr. 14).

One of the great things about the program is its educational component. Participating businesses had to incorporate one very important message: “In the United States, a woman has about a one in eight chance of developing breast cancer in her lifetime” into their décor. So now, not only are they raising awareness about the Race for the Cure, but they’re helping to educate the public.

All entries have been collected (deadline was last Friday) and a panel of volunteer judges will review and select winners from various categories. As Race chair – and as one of the volunteer judges, I got a sneak peak at some of the entries:

• Inspired by the fact that one person can make an impact, one individual decided to decorate his cubicle. His employer wasn’t participating, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t.
• One business owner, who is very quiet about being a breast cancer survivor, became a loud and proud supporter of Paint the Town Pink. Her employees helped decorate their entire storefront.
• Paint the Town Pink has reached several surrounding county businesses and for the first time we’ve had more entries from businesses in Carmel, Columbus, Elwood, Greenwood, Plainfield, and Rushville.

Some of the entries are very visible – like the bras hanging from Little Red Door Cancer Agency, along Meridian St. and pink ribbons that can be seen as you pass several Starbucks locations throughout town (104 locations). Some, however, are seen only by employees and patrons – like the decorated treadmill at Anytime Fitness at 86th and Ditch and the strip of cars by Regenstrief Institute with the clever race theme and message “dangerous curves ahead”.

This will be a fun week as I get the privilege of reviewing the applicants. And while the judges will select just one winner in each category, I truly believe everyone is a winner! Thanks to everyone who participated. Not only are you helping us raise awareness about the Race for the Cure (Apr. 17), but you’re helping us educate the public about a very important organization and cause.

Stop by these participating Paint the Town Pink participants: Borders Bookstore, Columbus Regional Hospital - Breast Health Center, Columbus Regional Hospital - Emergency Department, Conseco Insurance Co. (Jeremiah Shelton’s cubical), Creation Café, Curves Eagle Creek, Cummins Fuel Systems, CVS Pharmacy (Elwood), Dream Dinners, Little Red Door Cancer Agency, Minton-Capehart Federal Building, Regenstrief Institute, Rush Memorial Hospital, Starbucks (104 Indiana Locations), The AVON Store, Underwater Unlimited, Inc., Walker & Associates Insurance (won its category last year and has participated since 2006), Wellspring Pharmacy – North, West 86th Hair Designs (won its category last year) and West 86th Street Anytime Fitness.

Guess Which Celebrities will be at the Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure?

In the past few days the Komen Indianapolis office has confirmed several celebrity participants at this year’s Race for the Cure. Of course, I think the true celebrities and the heroes of the Race are the survivors – the truly amazing women and men who will be wearing pink survivor shirts in celebration of their fight against breast cancer. I also think the women, men and families walking in memory of a loved one are special celebrities.

I am, however, very excited to hear that several other celebrities will be our guests on Saturday, April 17. Can you guess who they are? (answers found at the end of the hints)

1. This celebrity has been involved with Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure since 2004 and has served as Honorary Race Chair since 2007. He sports #63 on the football field, has been with the NFL for the past 11 years and is a mainstay on the Colts offensive line as Center.
2. This celebrity is a native Hoosier, a graduate of Cathedral High School, a former Marine and on November 6, 2007 was elected the 48th Mayor of Indianapolis.
3. This celebrity will represent the Hoosier state at the annual MISS USA Pageant, which will be broadcast live on NBC the day after our Race. In addition to being named Miss Photogenic, she also won the distinguished title of Miss Indiana 2010.
4. This celebrity is the third generation to lead the number-one brand premium fresh chicken in the eastern U.S. His company is the third largest poultry company in the U.S.
5. This “celebrity” was featured in today’s Indianapolis Star special insert. She’s my favorite celebrity because she’s one of my best friends from college and a 2-year breast cancer survivor. She’s also my motivation for becoming the chair for the 2010 Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure. Click here for her story.

Answers:

1. Jeff Saturday
2. Mayor Greg Ballard
3. Allison Biehle
4. Jim Perdue, Chairman of Perdue Farms
5. Sheri Miller Story

If you haven’t already signed-up for the Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure, please sign-up today. Not only will you be helping us find a cure for breast cancer, but you just may bump into one of these special celebrities. Click here to register.

On the Road to Our Own Final Four (four weeks)

With March Madness upon us, I thought it would be fun to incorporate some basketball terms into this week’s blog. Although all eyes may be on the brackets, at Komen Indy, we’re focused on the Race. So for us, the “Final Four” actually means the final four weeks before thousands of runners and walkers take to the streets of downtown to help us raise money for breast cancer research and programs (technically, we’re five weeks from Race day, but that didn’t play into my theme).

This week we are focusing our game plan on registration. On a serious note … Race registrations are down 20 % from last year. That’s nearly 8,400 fewer participants. What does this mean for Komen – and for the community? It means $235,200 less to fund mammograms, clinical breast exams, education and screening services for those in our community. Imagine if your mom, sister, daughter, best friend, neighbor or co-worker needed these services. Please sign-up today.

This could mean 8,400 fewer participants and $235,200 less to fund education, screening and early detection services for those in our community.

So, we’re trying hard this week to increase the number of registrations. We’re letting people know our numbers are down. And we’re asking for our friends and family to join our team – the “Dream Team” that will help us find a cure to end breast cancer before the final buzzer.

It’s been fun to see some of the support we’ve received:

• Our friends at Entercom – one of our media sponsors, have invited us to join them at Smiley’s Prom and at their Easter Egg Hunt to hand out information. They also are offering you the opportunity to share who you are walking in memory or celebration of through their Memory Wall. You may even get a phone call to share your story...on the radio!


• The Indianapolis Indians have invited us to be a part of their opening weekend, which is the same weekend as the Race. We will be at Victory Field on Opening Night to sign-up last minute participants and raise awareness of Komen Indy among Indians’ fans. Visit this blog before the Race for a blog from Rowdie.


• Our partners at WTHR have created fantastic PSAs, featuring Jeff and Karen Saturday, and Andrea Morehead and John Stehr, which will begin running on their station. They also have featured Komen Indy on Focus and featuring survivor stories on their program.


• The Indianapolis Star special insert will help raise awareness – and has some great stories highlighting the Race, survivors and breast cancer. Look for that issue to hit newsstands on March 31.

We also have 11 national sponsors and 65 local sponsors who are Komen Indy’s MVPs. Without the generosity and support of our sponsors the Indianapolis Race for the Cure would not be possible. While all of our sponsors are doing amazing things to support the Race, these are a few plays that I think score big points:

• Hoosier Lottery will be handing out free lottery tickets at the Race. One per person.


• McAlister’s Deli is sponsoring the Race with an in-kind donation of food and beverages for all of the Komen Indianapolis meetings.


• Omni Severin Indianapolis has donated several weekend stays at their hotel, as well as 5 night/6 day stay at the Omni Cancun, as prizes for fundraising incentives. They also are offering a special room rate of $109 per night to Race participants the weekend of the Race and donating $10 of that back to Komen Indy. Click here for reservations.

There’s a lot happening – and we want you to be a part of the fun; to be a part of the Race for the Cure. It’s a slam dunk, really. Just sign up today and be a part of the Cure!

Komen Puts Fun in Fundraising

I must say, I think the fundraising efforts of Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure this year are pretty cool. And from what I understand, there is a much needed emphasis placed on our fundraising efforts. As it turns out, the Indianapolis Race is the 6th largest in size, but we’re actually 70th (give or take a few) in terms of dollars raised.

With the creativity of a few staff and executive committee members, Komen Indy has created the Power of Ten. You’ve probably already heard about it, so if you know what it is feel free to skip down to some of the prizes and ideas on how you can increase your own fundraising efforts. If you don’t know what it is let me tell you briefly … The Power of 10 is the basic idea of asking 10 friends for $10. If 40,000 of our participants were successful in the Power of Ten challenge we would raise an additional $4 million to be used to fund grants for local organizations. Remember, 75% of the money raised stays local! That’s pretty powerful!

Here’s another message I really like about the Power of 10 … The Power of 10 is the power to fund a mammogram for a woman in need! It is the power to help fund the cure! It is the power to save a life!

About the prizes… laptop computers, weekend stays at the Omni Severin Indianapolis, Hoosier Lottery gift baskets filled with lottery tickets, Komen gift baskets and more will be given away weekly between now and the Race as incentives for fundraising. Everyone that raises $100 will be entered into a drawing to win the grand prize – a 6 day/5 night stay at the Omni Cancun in Cancun, Mexico. After the Race, everyone who raised at least $150 will receive really cool flair (buttons) and for those that raised $500 or more will receive a $25 MainGate gift card. These are just some of the ways we want to thank Race participants for going above and beyond to help us find a cure.

About the fundraising… there are some really creative ideas that teams and individuals are doing to fund raise. Below are a few things that the team, Karen’s Angels, have planned to help their team raise additional dollars for Komen Indy.

• Sleep for the Cure - a slumber party where everyone pays $10 to attend. Party goers will be wearing Pink pajamas and drinking Pink cocktails all night long!!


• Prayer for the Cure - a portion of their church services will have prayer for survivors, and then will ask for a $10 donation (or whatever one can give).


• Dine for the Cure - the team will meet for dinner with guests, and everyone will pay for their own meal, and then donate $10 toward their fundraising goal.

What fundraising ideas do you have in place? Please share some of your fundraising tips so others can be successful. Click here to get some ideas on fundraising. Remember, registration gets you to the start line; fundraising helps get us to a cure.

Jeff Saturday Fans Pink After Super Bowl

While many Colts fan were blue over the turnout of the Super Bowl, those of us involved with the Race for the Cure were still pink (ok, and blue too). We cheered loudly throughout the season and of course, on Feb. 7, for our favorite player, Jeff Saturday – a longtime supporter and friend of Komen Indianapolis. No matter what the scoreboard said at the end of the Super Bowl, Jeff Saturday is a true champion in the hearts and minds of everyone involved with Komen. He’s a winner on and off the field, that’s for sure.

Jeff and his wife, Karen, have been involved with Komen Indianapolis Race for the Cure since 2004 and have served as Honorary Race Chairs since 2007. With relatives and close friends touched by breast cancer, both Jeff and Karen are “passionately pink” and are truly active and committed to the cause.

In addition to serving as Race Honorary Chairs – they are on-site early Race morning sporting their pink pride (Jeff trades in his Colts jersey for a “Real Men Wear Pink” shirt); they have also served as judges for Paint the Town Pink and have emceed the Pink Parade (Karen has walked with the group in the past). The Saturdays also participate in notable Komen Indianapolis events such as the Circle of Hope recognition reception and the Pink Ribbon Celebration survivor luncheon.

Jeff, (#63), has been with the NFL for the past 11 years and is a mainstay on the Colts offensive line as Center. His stats are impressive to football fans (voted onto five Pro Bowl teams, named twice to the Associated Press NFL All-Pro First Team and, of course, a member of the Super Bowl XLI Championship Team. I even read that he even has an action figure). Off the field, he’s even more impressive to community organizations. In addition to his commitment to Komen, he supports Riley Hospital for Children, is an active spokesman for the People’s Burn Foundation and serves on the boards for Kids’ Voice of Indiana and Sharon Bassett Foundation. Jeff was recently acknowledged by the NFL at the 23rd Annual Super Bowl Breakfast as a nominee for the 2010 Bart Starr Award (along with Kurt Warner and Drew Brees) – recognized for outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field in and in the local community. A well-deserved recognition for sure!

So, while he didn’t win another Super Bowl ring this year; he won the hearts and praises of several thousand Race participants who appreciate his commitment to our Super event … Race for the Cure. I look forward to standing next to Jeff and Karen on April 17 and cheering for all of the runners and walkers who are helping us get one step closer to finding a cure.