With your support, October 2015's Breast Cancer Awareness Month was one of the most successful and life-saving months in history, but just because the calendar has changed to a new month doesn't mean the mission stops!
Thank you to everyone who attended an event or contributed to a campaign during our month-long commitment to bringing education and resources to fight breast cancer to the Central Florida community. Whether you danced at the Jazzercise Hip, Hop and Hope event, purchased a pink flamingo in Winter Park or College Park as part of the Pink Out initiative or became a foot soldier in the Pink Army, your efforts will have an immediate impact in your neighbors' lives.
A special thanks to the team at Market Traders Institute (MTI) for its efforts to raise funds to support the Pink Army through Market Traders 4th Annual Trading for Ta-Tas Campaign. MTI, a localized company for financial education, raised funds through a three-part program: live market trading, employee donations and the donations of its students. Through Oct. 31, MTI also matched all student donations up to $10,000. Even past October 31, though, MTI is still collecting donations toward the cause because its employees know how crucial this money is to both women and men affected by breast cancer in our community. They are so passionate about the cause that they've already raised $40,000 toward their $125,000 goal.
Raising this money means hundreds of women will be afforded the opportunity for free early detection screenings, which can lead to early treatment and successful results. Never do we want a family to experience the loss of a loved one due to breast cancer, like my family did several years ago, says Jacob Martinez, President of MTI. Every dollar going to research and early detection matters, so we are hoping to far surpass our $25,000 goal this year.
The fight against breast cancer is more important now than ever. More than 39,000 women will die of the disease this year, making breast cancer the second-most common cancer and the second-leading cause of cancer death in women.
MTI is setting an example for other companies to follow to engage its employees in creative and effective ways to raise funds. Some of MTI's company-wide initiatives have included Casual for a Cure, a day employees donate money to dress down; a Pink Off costume contest; a ping-pong tournament; and of course MTI's most popular and successful source of donations: trading for a cure.
MTI has developed a trading system for this month, where 50 percent of the proceeds go directly to AdventHealth's Pink Army, and it's been a great success. For the third straight year, senior market analyst Joshua Martinez traded for a cure. He earned $4,000 in 2014 and $10,000 in 2013, the equivalent of 140 mammograms. We're looking forward to seeing his final total for this year!
Martinez says he believes every human being has a moral obligation to help out those who are in need.
Everyone has a different level of how far they are wanting, able, or willing to go, he says. This is just a small way of our participation to try and make the world a better place.
Are you ready to join the Pink Army? We recruit all year long! Complete your first mission for the Pink Army by helping fund education and community awareness campaigns that promote routine mammograms and self-exams. The Pink Army fundraising efforts help fund free screenings and diagnostic testing to underserved or uninsured patients through the Jennie Yoon Buchanan, M.D, Breast Cancer Fund. It also supports innovative research and clinical trials benefiting breast cancer patients and a survivorship program to address the complex needs of breast cancer survivors.
As a AdventHealth foot soldier, you will play a vital role by bringing education, awareness and hope to the people of our community.
You can support the Pink Army by:
MAKING a personal gift
ENLISTING and becoming an active member
RECRUITING fellow comrades to join the fight and make gifts on your personal fundraising page.
Together, we can change lives and save lives, all year long.
