Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Circle of Life

Life is a circle; while some are rejoicing new beginnings, others may be mourning an ending...and so it goes with our Komen family.
We would like to extend our condolences to Amy Treadway Iacaboni in the loss of her husband, Vince, and to Sue Mosely in the loss of her mother.

As the circle goes round, we are ecstatic to learn that our Elizabeth in the Komen office is pregnant!

And as the circle continues, we are proud to announce that Online Registration just opened! Jill Winholt explains in an email:

First stop is www.komenarkansas.org. Look around and see what's going on with the affiliate. When you're ready, place your cursor over Komen Race for the Cure so that the menu pops up below. From there, click on Race Information and then Team Information on the right of the next page. This will take you to the Teams page where you can find all of the information you should need regarding teams. Be sure to download the Team Captain Kit.

When you're ready, click on Register on the left side of the page. If you are going to be the Team Captain, you will need to register first and get the team set up. Then your team members can join the team. Of course, this is assuming that you are registering online. If not, information is in the Kit to register offline.

Also, we have a team blog that you might want to check out: http://arrftcteams.blogspot.com and we are on facebook with a group for captains: AR RFTC Team Captains. We also have pages on facebook for the affiliate and Three Miles of Men: Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure: Arkansas and Komen for the Cure Arkansas- 3 Miles of Men.

Yell if you have any questions. Email us at teams@komenarkansas.org. Or better yet--join us for the Team Captains' Party on July 18th! It will be at the Patrick Henry Hayes Senior Center in North Little Rock at 2pm.

And if you get all hot & thirsty waiting for the party, stop by Planet Smoothie and pick up a Pink Promise Smoothie. Part of the proceeds will go to Komen.

Erin Dean, our Sponsorship chair (and Soiree Cover Girl!) announced that sponsorship is going well. The AT&T Pioneers have raised $3000 as well. We are looking for more Race Friends and Block sponsors. If you or your company would like more info, please contact Komen and we will be happy to help you.

Our very own Elizabeth Owens who blogs for us at Komenarkansasblog.com has been contacted by Better Homes & Gardens for a feature. Elizabeth is looking for more survivor stories, personal stories, etc. Please contact her with your information. Who knows? You may be reading about yourself or your family/friends in an upcoming issue.

The Kids for a Cure tee shirt contest drew 280 entries....a lot of talented young artists, which makes it so hard to choose a winning entry. Don't forget their race will be October 3rd on the State Capitol grounds.

The press conference will be Wednesday, August 11, on the Junction Bridge at 10:30 a.m. Please be there to support Komen!

If you have a business with an electronic billboard or sign, think about posting Komen Race info on them during the month of October. We want to Paint the Town Pink! Please contact Donna Easley if you would like to volunteer your billboard or sign.

Teaser Alert! The Survivor Luncheon this year after the Race? Be on the lookout for disco balls! That's all I'm sayin....

We would like to get restaurants signed up for this year's Put A Fork in It. Restaurants who participate pledge a certain amount of their profits on Race Day towards Komen. So be sure to go nosh at those restaurants on Race Day! A list of the participating establishments will be published at a later date.

And, if you want to be fit and in fighting form for the Race this year, Fitness for the Cure with our own Tjuana Byrd will be back for the 2nd year in a row! New this year for the Fitness Byrds: there will be a $10 fee to sign up. However, if you can't make it to LR to participate, there will be a Virtual Fitness Training online that will be of no cost. This allows those ladies who live out of town to join in the program without all the traveling to and fro.
How do you register for the Fitness program? When you register for the Race, there will be a space on the form for you to choose.

Don't forget the Team Captains Party on July 18. We are looking forward to welcoming new and old friends into our circle.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Activism

Recently, several states had primary runoffs to see who will be on the slate for the elections in November. Now, I don't know if your candidates are in the winner's circle, but I hope you took part, either by voting or volunteering for a candidate or cause.

Don't you wish beating cancer and other diseases were this easy--just casting a vote? But, it doesn't matter what the cause is, everything starts with a single step. Someone deciding that life can be made better, so they step forward to do something.
Won't you step forward, and help us find a cure for cancer?
It can be as easy as donating your time or money. Be a Team Captain. Urge your friends & family to join your team or be Team Captains themselves.

Today I received an email from Jennifer Luray at the Komen Advocacy Alliance. This is part of the email:

"Cancer screening and treatment programs around the country are at risk of being cut if Congress doesn't move quickly on a bill that would extend enhanced federal funding for Medicaid.
Women's lives are at stake. Without the extension, states will have to make deep cuts into core public health services and vital services like mammography and treatments like surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Loss of these services could be detrimental to women without private insurance.
Take action today and urge your legislators to extend enhanced federal funding for Medicaid, so we can protect women's access to cancer screening and treatment services."

"If these cuts happen, thousands of otherwise-eligible women will be unable to get regular screenings, leading to later diagnoses, more advanced cancers, and lower chances of survival – and leading to higher expenses for federal and state budgets down the road.
We understand the difficult budget environment but in this case women's lives are literally at stake. Your legislators need to know that their constituents support this funding. Now's your chance to tell them how important this is to you!"

Please, contact your legislator and urge them to extend the Medicaid funding.

Remember, We > me.

And it all starts with a single step.....

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Lazy days of Summer? NOT!

Summer has arrived! Lest you think your RFTC committee is out tanning by the side of the pool, think again--Donna has us busy as bees! Fundraising, organizing, getting the registration site ready for operation, just all kinds of good things.

In case you haven't gotten a Team Captain letter, go to the link listed here and read all the good happenings that are coming your way!
http://www.komenarkansas.org/assets/images/team-captain-letter.pdf

Don't forget the Team Captains' Party which is July 18th at 2pm! We will be looking forward to seeing old friends and new.

Looking for something for the kids to do this month? Check out the Kids for the Cure® t-shirt design contest which is being sponsored by Burger King & KATV Channel 7.

The Arkansas Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure is hosting a T-shirt design contest for the Kids for the Cure® program, part of this year’s Arkansas Race for the Cure in downtown Little Rock on October 16, 2010. Kids will have the opportunity to register for the Race as a Kids for the Cure® participant.

The Arkansas Affiliate invites children 12 and under to submit an original drawing for our Kids for the Cure® T-shirt. The winning artwork will be used as the signature design on the 1,500 T-shirts ordered for this program.
The rules for the competition are:

Artwork must be submitted on 8 ½” x 11” white paper or cardstock and mailed flat (folded paper cannot be formatted for T-shirt printing) to Komen Race for the Cure, 904 Autumn Road, Ste 500, Little Rock, AR 72211, by Monday, June 14.

Incorporating the theme of this year’s Race: “we > me” is suggested.

Design should incorporate the Komen pink ribbon somewhere in the art.

Only markers should be used in the artworks. Do not use crayons or colored pencils, as they do not transfer well onto T-shirts.

On the back of the artwork, please include the following in pencil:
Designer’s Name and Age
Name of school
Year in school
Home address
Parent or Guardian’s name
Contact telephone number and email address

By submitting a design, the designer and the designer’s parent or guardian consent to the entries becoming the property of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® and agree to the entry being used for promotional purposes. Entries will not be returned.

The winners and their parents or guardians will be asked to attend the 2K Family Walk on October 16, 2010, as part of the Race Festivities. The entries will be judged by a panel of judges based upon creativity, neatness and the overall spirit of the Race for the Cure®. The judges’ decision is final.

Funds from the Race for the Cure® are used to help eliminate breast cancer as a life-threatening disease and are used for education, screening, treatment and research programs.

*Hard copies of this are available at the following participating Burger King locations:
Benton: Congo Road Bryant: Reynolds Road
Cabot: Bill Foster Memorial Hwy, West Main Hot Springs: Central Ave, Grant Ave
Little Rock: Rodney Parham, East Broadway, Chenal Parkway, Cantrell, Col. Glenn
Malvern: Martin Luther King Blvd
North Little Rock: East McCain, Camp Robinson Road, Maumelle Blvd
Pine Bluff: North Blake Street, Olive Street
Sheridan: Hwy 167
Sherwood: East Kiehl

New for 2010--the Team Captains Facebook group! This will take the place of the 2009 Race's Komen Captains. The group name is "AR RFTC Team Captains."
While you are browsing Facebook, don't forget to check out our other pages--"Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure: Arkansas" and the "Komen for the Cure Arkansas--3 Miles of Men."

Danielle Smith held her annual "Ropin' for a Cure" over Memorial Day weekend in Rosebud, AR. It was a great event and raised lots of money. Everyone had a great time. Way to go, Danielle!

The next committee meeting will be June 16 at noon.

For other information and upcoming events, you can follow our blog. If you have a Komen event, please let us know!

Have a fun summer!