October is Breast Cancer Awareness month followed by National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness month in November. These are two great causes that I firmly believe in!
Think Pink! Think Purple! The pink ribbon is the symbol of breast cancer awareness whereas the purple ribbon is the symbol of various causes including but not limited to Alzheimer’s Awareness.
Many people wear a pink ribbon to show their moral support for women with breast cancer. The National Football League promotes breast cancer awareness throughout the month of October by including pink in their team websites and advertisements. Individual football players can be seen sporting pink gloves, pink hats, and even pink patches on their uniforms to show their support.
According to BreastCancer.org, about 1 in 8 women in the U.S. will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime and in 2010, there were more than 2.5 million breast cancer survivors in the U.S. According to alz.org 5.4 million people have Alzheimer’s and there are 14.9 million unpaid caregivers for Alzheimer’s patients.
Breast cancer awareness month is a campaign organized by breast cancer charities that takes place annually throughout the month of October. The goal behind this month long campaign is to increase public awareness of this disease as well as to raise funds for research. Thanks to the many generous donations by companies as well as individuals research into the cause, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of breast cancer is funded.
Cancer runs in my family. Well… Cancer and Alzheimer’s are diseases that run in my family. These are two diseases that have taken the lives of people I care about, people I have loved. It is incredibly difficult to watch anyone struggle with these diseases day in and day out, to watch them suffer. Not only do the individuals fighting these diseases struggle on a daily basis, but so do their friends, family, and caregivers. The struggle is emotional, physical, and financial. These diseases are hard on everyone touched by them.
I have to believe that one day there will be a cure.
The only way to find a cure for Cancer and a cure for Alzheimer’s is to research the cause, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of these diseases. Research costs money. It is a timely and costly endeavor. One in which I fully support. Each year my family fundraises and participates in the Walk to End Alzheimer’s.
Not everyone can give away money to support the causes they believe in, especially when so many people are out of work. It can be difficult enough just to keep a roof over your head and food on the table. But you do not need to hand over fistfuls of cash in order to make a difference.
There are many ways to show your support for these great causes. From, clicking a “Like” button on Facebook, using a coupon to purchase a specially marked container of Tide, or simply wearing a pink or purple ribbon there are many ways that you can show your support for these great causes without giving away your hard earned cash.
Hoover and Proctor & Gamble are official sponsors of Cleaning For A Reason. They are helping women everywhere receive the gift of free housecleaning. Buy a Hoover vacuum, a Swiffer, or a Mr. Clean® product and you are helping too! Hoover will also contribute $1 to the foundation - up to $25,000 - for every new Hoover Facebook or Cleaning For A Reason Facebook connection. To date, they have helped more than 4,000 women with cancer with more than $1 million in donated cleanings.
Procter and Gamble (P&G) support Breast Cancer Awareness by offering coupons to consumers to use on their products. For each coupon redeemed, two cents will be donated to NBCF to fund education on the importance of early detection and provide mammograms for those in need. The P&G donation is uncapped so the more you save, the more you give! P&G is also hosting a Facebook promotion where you can create a Facebook GIVE Hope badge and P&G will donate 25¢ to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.
Another great way to show your support of both Breast Cancer Awareness and Alzheimer’s Awareness is to sport either a pink or purple ribbon, or both! I know that some people who cannot afford to give their own money, but want to make a difference with throw a pink or purple themed party. Invite your friends over for a Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s Awareness charity party! You can serve pink cookies or purple and pink cake pops, and pass around a jar to collect money for the cause. Then send your guests home after a fun filled evening of socializing with informational pamphlets.
Even if you do not have money to spare, there are plenty of ways to make a difference. Take a minute and click a button, its free, easy, and fast! Take a look around the next time you are a the grocery and see if there are specially marked packages of products that donate to these causes.
Take a minute and think pink, think purple, think support!
Written by: Laura Andry
I was not compensated in ANY way for writing this post. Opinions and thoughts expressed here are 100% my own.
