Thank You Orange County!

On behalf of our Board, Race leadership committee, staff and especially the thousands of women you will help us serve, thank you for making our 2009 Race for the Cure a huge success!

Our deepest gratitude and appreciation go to participants, breast cancer survivors, sponsors, and volunteers who made the 18th annual Komen Orange County Race for the Cure another victory – another step closer to a world without breast cancer.

Thank you to all of our volunteers who worked tirelessly throughout the year and on Race Day to make the event a fun-filled day of inspiration. To those of you who willingly opened your wallets to help us raise $2.5 million, we humbly thank you. To our sponsors, we thank you for your steadfast support. Finally, to the more than 24,000 Race participants-We couldn’t have done it without you! Together, we are on our way to raising $3.1 million. You can continue to make a difference by donating to the Race through October 16 and fundraising year round with the Komen Orange County Affiliate.

For more information on our programs and services call 714-957-9157.

A Race by the Numbers

Thirst-busters "on the go".

Komen Orange County is having this very large outdoor party on Sunday, September 27 – known as Race for the Cure. What does it take to host 25,000 people?

 No thirst allowed – Komen will use 50,000 paper cups at water stations along the 5K Race course, filled by 1,250 gallons of water.  There will also be 30,000 plastic bottles of water available to participants (thanks Ralphs).

 There will be 281 portable toilets.

 Keeping it clean – There will be 450 large trash boxes located all over the premises, and volunteers will use 1,800 trash bags as they continually empty the trash into 7 large dumpsters. Newport Beach will sort all the trash so the appropriate items are recycled.

 Yoplait, the national Race series sponsor, will hand out 10,400 product samples. And there will be large pink boxes so you can lick the pink lids and drop them in, meaning another donation for Komen from Save Lids to Save Lives.

 The 1,482 Race volunteers, wearing sunny yellow t-shirts, will work to keep everyone safe and going in the right direction. (100 volunteers alone to direct parking and 60 along the race course to direct runners and walkers.)

 The most important number is one – meaning we need you there. Every person and every dollar counts.

Sweet Moments with the Symphony

Here’s a big apology that we can’t share one key ingredient from Music for the Cure – the sound of Tchaikovsky. But we can share photos of the successful collaboration between the Komen Orange County Affiliate and the Pacific Symphony. On the beautiful summer evening of September 12, music and a pink breast health message combined with fireworks to leave a lasting impression on the audience. A look at Music for the Cure is courtesy of the Orange County Register

http://www.ocregister.com/photos/day-in-photos-2567772

Free Fatburger

Yasmin, Laura and Amada, the smart women of Fatburger

For once, a little procrastination works in your favor! Of course you should have registered already for the Komen Orange County Race for the Cure – September 27. The annual Race is sneaking up on us. But if you are going to register for the Race at the Komen Registration Suite at Fashion Island, good for you. Fatburger, located just around the corner from the Race Suite, is offering a yummy incentive. 

When you hand in your paperwork at the Race Suite, you’ll get coupon for a free Fatburger when you purchase a fries and a drink. Help to fight breast cancer and get a free (almost) lunch! Thanks go to the smart women who work at Fatburger for pitching this promotion. After all, one of the biggest risk factors for getting breast cancer is being a woman. 

The full-service Race Registration Suite is located at Fashion Island, Atrium Court, lower level, next to Barnes & Noble and Fatburger. Dates and hours for the suite are at www.komenoc.org and taste bud planning is at www.fatburger.com.

A Crystal Clear Message

Faith, Hope & Love bracelet

Breast cancer awareness and screenings save lives. When breast cancer is detected early, a woman’s chances of survival are much higher. That’s pretty important information. With that in mind, breast cancer education is an integral part of www.oneineight.com which sells mission- driven merchandise. Not content to only sell pretty things, the site is a proactive way to reach women with the message of early detection and to help raise additional funds for breast cancer research and community outreach programs.  

Are you ready to shop? You can find breast cancer awareness jewelry, clothing and gifts. The bracelets are available in the standard 7 ½-inch size, as well as a larger size for women with lymphedema. Shopping here is a win-win. Go for it!

Feel-Good Partnerships

There are so many ways you can support sponsors and friends of Susan G. Komen for the Cure . . . and so little time.  It’s the season of “pink” when you can fill your Blackberry with dates and reminders of the win-win promotions that raise money and awareness for breast cancer programs. Let’s kick off the season with these corporate partners and events.

 

“Try It On for the Cure” on Sunday, September 13 at all Coldwater Creek stores. This is easy! Simply try on anything you like and Coldwater Creek will give $1 per customer to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, no purchase is necessary. If you do buy something, the company donates 10% of your purchase. Orange County locations include the Shops at Mission Viejo, South Coast Plaza, Seal Beach and Santa Ana. More information at www.komen.org

Massage for the Cure is 50 minutes of ahhhh! on Tuesday, September 15. If you go to  any of the 12 Massage Envy locations throughout Orange County and have a $35 massage, Komen will receive $10 to help women in the OC without access to health care. Walk-ins are welcome, but a reservation is suggested to make sure you get what you want, when you want it.  www.massageenvy.com

Martini in the Morning.com will liven up the Komen Race Registration Suite on two Saturdays, September 12 and 19, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.  Come to register for the Race or pick up your t-shirt and meet Brad Chambers, plus be part of the live broadcast portion each hour. Brad will have giveaways!  The Race Suite is at Fashion Island, Atrium Court, lower level next to Barnes & Noble and the food court. Martini in the Morning is a Gold level sponsor and will also have a booth on Race Day, plus a team on the 5K course.

Pretty In Pink

Race for the Cure is all about breast cancer survivors. The highlight of the morning is not who crosses the finish line first (although we love those elite runners), but the Survivor Tribute on the back steps of Pacific Life. If you’ve been there you know the power of the music combined with the pride, strength and tears on survivors’ faces. If this year will be your first Race, don’t miss the ceremony at 9 a.m. sharp on Sunday, September 27.

Breast cancer survivors belong to a special club that no one signs up for. They deserve the “group hug” they get on Race Day.

The special treatment for survivors begins when they register. They get a special pink T-shirt and visor, courtesy of national Race sponsor Zeta Tau Alpha. They’ll get a pink re-usable tote bag from local sponsor Mobile Edge. On Race Day, breast cancer survivors are offered coffee and food, beads, a rose, a parade and that special tribute.  More information regarding breast cancer survivor recognition is available at www.komenoc.org Remember, all Race t-shirts (including the pink ones) are available at the Race Registration Suite at Fashion Island, starting Saturday, September 5 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Survivor Monica Olmos gives a sneak peak of the 2009 survivor T-shirt and visor.

Mayhem, Medicine, Music, and Miracles

Marie (right) with her sister, Patricia

Three-time breast cancer survivor and Komen board member Marie M. La Fargue writes how music was an important part of her healing process.  We celebrate Marie and her journey, and will recognize survivors at the upcoming Music for the Cure on Sept. 12, and the Race for the Cure on Sept. 27.  Join us at both these wonderful events!

* * *

By Marie M. La Fargue

As much as there has been miraculous healing and a sense of peace in my life about breast cancer after sixteen years of survivorship, it is safe to say that “a song has outlived all sermons in the memory”—to paraphrase a famous quote by Henry Gates!  Amy Grant’s beautiful holiday song, “Breath of Heaven” always comes to mind as well as the gospel song “Never Would Have Made It” that is hauntingly and powerfully sung by Marvin Sapp.  After three times battling this disease, it is very evident that there has been an ever-present divine force guiding and protecting my life—how else could I have survived such mayhem and still have a song to sing?

Good medicine was mixed with a touch of melodic music—jazz, classical, R & B, pop, rock, and only on a few occasions the blues … because they do not stay in my soul for very long!   Through each battle I received and interpreted report after report, scan after scan, consult after consult and an abundance of overwhelming information—solicited and unsolicited—to add to the ever playing symphony in the scale of “the big C” Major in the tetrachords of B—breast cancer—minor.  I became very much in tune with authentic living and my sentiments became very simpatico with the great jazz legend Miles Davis who once said, “Don’t play what’s there, play what’s not there.”  I became quite the master at improvising!

Yes, I learned to muster the courage to hear the song in my own heart that helped me make the decisions to ensure my survivorship.  As an opinion was rendered, I went into my sacred place to arrange the music that felt right in my spirit regardless of what I saw on the medical sheet music.  And even as the critics’ words seemed to shake the confidence in my sound, voice, and presence, I continued to make beautiful music with the medical wonders that happened in each medical stage performance.  After such a journey of faith and perseverance despite some critics and skeptics reviews, my Grammy Award of life is in knowing that I did it “My Way” and I can sing my song with a chorus of other beautiful women who have seen more than a few days of “Stormy Weather” before they could “Let the Sun Shine!”

Spotted Around Town

You can’t miss it! (The signs or the concert.)

“Music for the Cure” is coming . . . and going . . . all over Orange County. Very cool signs on Orange County Transportation Authority buses are “tooting the horn” about the upcoming September 12 concert.

Bravo to Farmers & Merchants Bank for sponsoring the bus signs and this new collaboration. A special thanks goes to F&M CEO Henry Walker, a longtime supporter of the arts, and a Komen Pink Tie Guy.

Pacific Symphony will close the summer season at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater with the dramatic “Tchaikovsky Spectacular” and the night will be a partnership with the Komen OC.  Imagine the sounds of the 1812 Overture, the night air, fireworks, a picnic basket and the spotlight on Komen and the upcoming Race for the Cure on September 27. What harmony!

You can get Music for the Cure tickets at http://www.pacificsymphony.org/main.taf?p=9,5,6,6&ProductionID=5453 Don’t forget to enter the Promo Code: “Komen” to receive the 20% discount on your ticket purchase.

You can register for the Race at www.komenoc.org.