Paint Port Pink kicks off Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Paint Port Pink, Mather Hospital’s annual breast cancer awareness campaign, returns this year with a full calendar of events. The month-long breast health outreach by Mather’s Fortunato Breast Health Center raises awareness, provides educational information and fosters solidarity in the community.
Paint Port Pink begins Tuesday, Oct. 1 with a Turn on Your Lights event for local community partners and residents, who turn on pink lights that were distributed by the hospital along with flags and information on breast health. Many community partners decorate their display windows with a pink theme and Mather recognizes the best efforts through their annual window decorating contest.
New this year is Ladies Night Out at Comsewogue Public Library on Wednesday, Oct. 2, designed to celebrate women’s health by combining fun activities with wellness information. Participants can attend a mini-paint night, make their own body scrubs and get a back and neck massage by Mather-affiliated chiropractors. They can also learn about breast health from the Fortunato Breast Health Center’s Co-Medical Director Dr. Michelle Price, participate in a Reiki circle and get information on good nutrition for women from a Mather registered dietitian and sample healthy smoothies.
The Pink Your Pumpkin contest also returns this year. The contest asks participants to visit a local farm stand or craft store and find the perfect pumpkin, use their imagination to decorate it, and then submit a photo to [email protected] before Oct. 20. The top three winners will be selected by employee leaders at Mather Hospital on Oct. 21, and the results will be posted on Mather’s Facebook page.
Wear Pink Day is Oct. 18 – which is World Mammography Day – when Mather employees and community residents are encouraged to dress in pink and post their photos at #paintportpink.
Paint Port Pink community partners will again offer special promotions and fundraisers for the Fortunato Breast Health Center’s Fund for Uninsured, which offers no-cost or discounted mammography screenings to those with little or no insurance. These include Kilwin’s, Panera Bread, Chick-fil-A, Amazing Olive and Ethan Allen Furniture, Setauket.
The fall semester of HealthyU, Mather’s seminar series and exhibit fair, is on Saturday, Oct. 26. The day will feature many informative seminars including Women and Heart Health, the Brittle Bones of Osteoporosis, a Checklist for Health after 60, Tax Tips for Seniors and Staying Young Forever. Register for this free event at https://www.matherhospital.org/healthyu-registration/.
For more information about Paint Port Pink, please call 631-476-2723 or visit www.matherhospital.org/pink.
Photos from Mather Hospital
