Flamingos Flock to Lake Eola Park for the First Time to Kick off Pink Out Initiative

Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, District 3 City Commissioner Robert F. Stuart restaurateur John Rivers, and leaders with AdventHealth for Women gathered at Lake Eola Park to kick off the annual Pink Out initiative, which provides access to care for under-served and uninsured women battling breast cancer.

Florida’s iconic pink yard flamingos are a signature element of Pink Out, which coincides with Breast Cancer Awareness month. This year, flamingos are gathered in a flock at Lake Eola Park, representing the 1,890 women who will be newly diagnosed with breast cancer across Central Florida by the end of this year.

The City of Orlando is pleased to partner with AdventHealth and 4 Rivers Restaurant Group on this important initiative, said Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer. Each year, we enjoy seeing these flamingo flocks pop up around town, and they serve as an effective visual reminder of the importance of mammograms.

AdventHealth’s Pink Out campaign began in Winter Park in 2011 and has since expanded throughout Central Florida. Proceeds from the sales of the yard flamingos and community donations have funded breast cancer screenings for more than 6,500 women who otherwise could not afford a mammogram. Several dozen of those women were diagnosed and treated for breast cancer.

4 Rivers Restaurant Group is joining this year’s efforts and encouraging Central Floridians to help spread awareness through social media. To join and help raise funds, people are invited to post a picture of themselves person standing on one leg like a flamingo with the hashtag #jointheflock.

The restaurants will donate $1 to the AdventHealth Breast Cancer Care Fund for each post made throughout October depicting the flamingo stand and hashtag.

Breast cancer is a serious health concern for women of all ages, Rivers said. We are happy to support the Pink Out initiative and look forward to people across Central Florida joining the flock.

Throughout October, AdventHealth is offering mammograms for $30. The screenings are offered at more than a dozen Central Florida locations. To learn more, visit 30minutemammo.com.

Breast cancer is very treatable when detected early, and we want women to know that getting a mammogram is not only extremely important, it can also be convenient and affordable, said Dr. Lisa Minton, surgeon and breast cancer specialist at AdventHealth.

Also helping kick off Pink Out was Tarralyn Jones, who was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2002 at the age of 35. She was diagnosed again in 2008. After treatment, she is now cancer-free.

For me getting a mammogram was a lifesaver, Jones said. I want to do all I can to let other women know the importance of screening and early detection.

AdventHealth is spreading the flamingo flocks to 12 cities across Central Florida this month.

For media inquiries only, contact AdventHealth Corporate Communications at Call407-303-5950