The Charlotte Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure invites your church to join us in the fight against breast cancer on Sunday, April 25, 2010 by participating in Pink Sunday!

WHAT: Komen Charlotte is partnering with African American churches in Mecklenburg County for the first annual Pink Sunday event on April 25th. The event is designed to help educate the members of their congregations on breast health and the importance of early detection of breast cancer.

WHO: Any church or faith based organization in Mecklenburg County is encouraged to participate in spreading life-saving messages about early detection.

WHEN: Sunday, April 25, 2010

WHERE: Your Church

WHY: To help address high breast cancer mortality rates among African American women in our area. We believe that breast health education and awareness can help to change these statistics:

• African American women within Mecklenburg County are diagnosed at Stage IV (late stage) breast cancer at twice the rate of other populations;  thereby underscoring the importance of awareness and early detection in saving lives.

• Only 49% of African American women reported having a mammogram within the past year.

• African American women in the U.S. have a higher death rate from Breast Cancer than any other ethnic population.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE: 

1. Registration Form Pink Sunday 2010 (Fill out this form to register your church). Registration deadline is April 1, 2010. Churches may be added after that date based on the availability of educational material.

2. Once your church is registered, the Komen Charlotte Affiliate will provide breast health educational brochures, at no charge, for you to distribute to your congregation on Pink Sunday. (Maximum allotment of breast health materials per church is for 200 people. If you feel you need more than that, please contact us to discuss.)

3. Each church should appoint a Pink Ambassador to pick up their breast health educational materials on Tuesday, April 13th or Wednesday, April 14th between the hours of 10am – 4pm at Carocon Corporation, 5934 Old Pineville Road, Charlotte, NC 28217. Dawn Alligood is a Komen volunteer and is the on-site contact at Carocon. She can be reached at (704) 561-3388. If you are unable to pick-up the educational materials on April 13th or 14th, please contact Mary Hamrick at the Komen office to make other arrangements.

In addition to the educational materials, the Komen Charlotte Affiliate will provide each Pink Ambassador with a sample script highlighting breast health screening information, resources and statistics to be shared at the service, as well as breast health flyers to be posted on bulletin boards or other visible areas of your church.

4. Beyond the materials provided by Komen Charlotte, each individual church is responsible for coordinating its own event during their regular service on Pink Sunday. The event can be as simple or as elaborate as your church chooses.

Following are some ideas on how your church might celebrate Pink Sunday:

• Ask your congregation to wear "pink."
• Have your pastor or another church member share information about breast health and early detection using the sample script provided.
• Ask a survivor to tell her/his story during the service so others may benefit from her/his experience.  
• Post breast health information and local mammography resources provided by Komen Charlotte on bulletin boards or other visible areas of your church.
• Celebrate breast cancer survivors in your congregation with pink flowers.
• Honor those who have lost their battle with a moment of silence.
• Host a reception after the service with pink lemonade and cake.
• Create Walls of Hope with the names of survivors and those who have lost their battle with breast cancer.
• Conduct a candlelight prayer service.
• Have a collection plate on Pink Sunday passed for donations to be made to the local Charlotte Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
• Locate a fish bowl in the church entryway for donations on Pink Sunday.
• Have the congregation make donations in memory of or in honor of a member of the congregation who has battled breast cancer.
• Make a donation online HERE  www.komencharlotte.org   
• Consider donations to Susan G. Komen for the Cure Charlotte Affiliate in lieu of flowers for bereavement requests.
• Order PINK PINS OR OTHER MERCHANDISE (CLICK HERE) from the Komen National website to provide to survivors or your congregation.

Questions? Please contact Mary Hamrick, Community Outreach Manager at Komen Charlotte. Call 704-347-8181 or email outreach@komencharlotte.org.

Pink Sunday Toolkit

• Registration Form Pink Sunday 2010

• Information on Educational Materials Pick-up

• Ideas for Celebrating Pink Sunday

• Sample Script for Pink Sunday

• Sample Church Bulletin

 • Pink Sunday Photo Challenge

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The Importance of Spreading the Word

• One in eight women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime.
• Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among women in the U.S. ages 40-59.
• The five-year survival rate for breast cancer, when caught early before it spreads beyond the breast, is 98 %.
• The most significant risk factors for breast cancer are being female and getting older.
• With respect to age, race, religion and socioeconomic status, breast cancer knows no boundaries.
• While mortality rates continue to decline in Caucasian women due to improvements in early detection and treatment, 32 percent more African American women die of breast cancer despite a 13 percent lower incidence rate.
• African American women are more likely to be diagnosed with later stage breast cancer, thereby underscoring the importance of awareness and early detection in saving lives.
• Compared to Caucasian women whose disease has spread, African American women have a significantly lower five-year survival rate.
• African American women show a higher incidence of breast cancer among younger women, when it is more aggressive, than Caucasian women.
 
1 Healthcare Business of Thomson Reuters © 2007
2 American Cancer Society Cancer Facts & Figures for African Americans 2009-2010
3 American Cancer Society's Breast Cancer Facts & Figures 2007-2008
4 caonline.amcancersoc.org/cgi/content/full/58/2/71
5 American Cancer Society's Cancer Facts & Figures 2009

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About Susan G. Komen for the Cure

Susan G. Komen for the Cure was established in 1982 by Nancy Brinker to honor the memory of her sister, Susan G. Komen, who died from breast cancer at age 36. Credited as the leading catalyst in the fight against breast cancer, Susan G. Komen for the Cure and its 125 Affiliates continue to lead the fight against this disease. Komen for the Cure has more than 75,000 volunteers working through a network of U.S. and international Affiliates, making it one of the most progressive grassroots organizations in breast cancer today. We hope that you will participate in “Pink Sunday” to help eradicate breast cancer as a life threatening disease.