The USM athletic department announced Feb. 4 that they will be hosting a charity event called “Think Pink,” which will be held Saturday, Feb. 13 to help raise awareness for breast cancer prevention and research.
This is the first year that the department of athletics will be hosting the charitable event, according to USM Athletic Director Al Bean, who also mentioned it’s the perfect time for USM to bring attention to this important issue.
“‘Think Pink’ is a great thing for our athletics department to be involved with right now,” Bean said. “With a combination of a lot of athletic events happening and the charitable event coming the day before Valentine’s Day, we felt it was the right time to get this going.”
“Think Pink” will include a brunch for alumni, family and friends, held in the Alumni Reception Center in the ice arena section of the Costello Sports Complex.
The 13th is going to be a busy day on the Gorham campus. In addition to “Think Pink,” the USM men and women’s indoor track and field teams will host the Little East Conference and Alliance Championships at 12 p.m. The men and women’s basketball teams will be taking on Rhode Island College in LEC action at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m., and the men’s hockey team will be hosting an ECAC East Conference game as Tufts will travel to Gorham for a 4 p.m. start in the ice arena.
During the athletic games and events throughout the day, the athletics department will be doing several 50/50 raffles, as well as foul shooting and three-point contests at halftime of the basketball games. There will also be t-shirts sold throughout the day.
“We decided that this was something we needed to start doing as so many people in college sports are helping to benefit this great cause,” Bean said. “The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association [WBCA] has been active in ‘Think Pink’ over the last few years, and Gary Fifield has really supported the idea for our athletics department to assist with the effort to raise awareness.”
The WBCA first started this foundation in 2007 when former North Carolina State University head women’s basketball coach, Kay Yow, decided to take initiative after she was diagnosed with breast cancer for the third time. According to the WBCA Pink Zone Initiative website, which is the official name of the initiative, 120 schools became involved to help raise breast cancer awareness and prevention in 2007. Just after two years, the campaign grew to over 1,600 participating schools and raised more than $1.3 million dollars in proceeds. These numbers are growing again in 2010 as schools like USM are joining in to help raise money and awareness for the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund.
The USM athletics department is very excited to participate in raising money to benefit breast cancer research. USM student-athletes have stepped up to assist with the endeavor. This group includes members of USM’s Student Athlete Advisory Committee.
“Students in particular are going to be a big part in the success of this event, which is a great thing to see from our student-athletes,” Bean said. “We’re trying to pool efforts together and do as much as we can.”
The brunch will last from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and is open to anyone who would like to come and support a great cause. All the proceeds of the event will be donated to breast cancer research through the American Cancer Society’s foundation, Making Strides Against Breast Cancer.
If you’re interested in registering for the brunch, please contact USM Assistant Athletic Director, Meredith Bickford, at [email protected], or call (207) 780-5997.