Think Pink: October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

The City of Eugene says: Think Pink.

[00:00:06] Councilor Claire Syrett: Councilor Yeh is going to speak to the fact that some of us are wearing pink in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I just want to note that my 88-year-old mother is a breast cancer survivor. She had breast cancer when she was about 42 years old and never had a recurrence. So very grateful for that. So it is a very personal issue for me. Thank you.

[00:00:29] Mayor Lucy Vinis: Thank you. And I missed the memo, even though I knew it was coming. So, but I’m thinking pink, I’m just thinking it.

[00:00:37] Councilor Randy Groves: I don’t have a stitch of pink clothing, but I’m wearing a pink ribbon. If you can see it on my shirt in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, that was the best I could come up with on short notice. I used to have an old Fire Department t-shirt that was pink that we’d wear on this day as a fire department. But that went to the back to the logistics, like all my fire gear.

[00:00:58] Councilor Jennifer Yeh: Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an annual campaign to raise awareness about the impact of this disease. On average, every two minutes, someone is diagnosed in the United States with breast cancer, and it is estimated that just over 46,000 people will die this year from breast cancer.

However, thanks in part to this campaign, progress is being made. Death rates have declined since the 1990s with increased awareness of screening, early detection, and improvements in treatment options. While people assigned female at birth or at the highest risk of diagnosis, no matter your gender, if you have a chest area, then you should talk to your healthcare professional about screening. All people have breast issues and could potentially get breast cancer.

Lastly, I want to do a big thank you to EPD who went pink again this year by adding pink decals to their cars and motorcycles to raise awareness and show support. Obviously, here at the City of Eugene, it’s an important month to us and I just wanted to share, so everyone understood what it’s about. Thank you.

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[00:02:13] Councilor Matt Keating: I am wearing pink, but the lighting is subpar at my new house. I have not mastered my Zoom lighting yet. So this is actually a pink shirt and Councilor Groves, I have several other pink shirts, but I don’t think you and I are the same size. But I appreciate, the ribbon wearing, I appreciate Councilor Yeh organizing all of us to Stand United and Wear Pink. Or Think Pink, as the mayor is Thinking Pink in support of finding a cure and increasing awareness of breast cancer throughout our community.

[00:02:47] Councilor Mike Clark: I appreciate the efforts to highlight this terrible disease. I would encourage everyone who’s listening to us right now to act individually in that regard to donate money, to be involved. There’s plenty of folks the Real Men Wear Pink campaigns. There’s plenty of campaigns to allow you to invest in the opportunity to help people find a cure for breast cancer. I encourage everybody to jump in and do their little part. From my experience, my former mother-in-law was a wonderful human being and my children were deprived of their grandmother as a result of this horrible disease. It’s something that’s near and dear to me. And I hope people will, as I have done, jump in and participate in whatever way they can, to contribute to the effort, to find a cure for this terrible, terrible disease.

[00:03:42] Councilor Emily Semple: Breast cancer certainly affects most of us in one way or another. My cousin died of breast cancer in her thirties. So it’s an important issue.

[00:03:55] Councilor Alan Zelenka: I too don’t own anything pink but I have had several friends that are breast cancer survivors, fortunately. So to me, it’s a personal issue as well. It is a horrible disease and we should do everything we can to eradicate it.

[00:04:10] Councilor Greg Evans: I’m not wearing anything pink. I do have pink ties in my wardrobe, but I will share with you that my father’s father’s name was Pink. How that happened, I have no idea. But it truly, it truly was Pink. So, um, but I also wanted to say, I’m going to be out of commission for a couple of weeks plan to hopefully be back by November 1st. And then I’m going to have another situation that I have to deal with around between Christmas and New Years. And I just might as well say it. Yeah, I have prostate cancer. I was just diagnosed several weeks ago. In addition to that my other DNA gift was renal failure. So I’m dealing with both of those issues. But they’re not going to get me down. I’m going to fight back. And the mayor and the city manager know what my situation is right now, but I figured, you know, might as well tell you guys.

[00:05:26] Mayor Lucy Vinis: Thank you, Councilor Evans for sharing that with everyone. And we all wish you a speedy recovery, and we wish your doctors and nurses and all of your medical providers, competent hands and good judgment, and that they will take the best care possible of you. Cause we want you and we miss you and we care about you. So we look forward to having you back in full health.