Dorothy: [00:00:00] Oh my goodness, here it is, October, and we have so many new activities happening for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. That happens every October, Breast Cancer Awareness, we do all kind of events, programs, education, things that will help you understand the importance of early detection and having your mammogram. Join us today to learn more.
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Let’s Talk About Your Breasts. A different kind of podcast presented to you by The Rose. The Breast Center of Excellence and a Texas treasure. You’re going to hear frank discussions about tough topics and you’re going to learn why knowing about your breasts could save your life.[00:01:00]
So today we have with us, Elda, who is our communications manager, and she’s going to talk about all the things that we do at The Rose to make October special. Elda, tell us what, what is October anyway to us?
Elda: Oh my goodness. Well, we plan our entire year around that. In our marketing department and actually in my personal life too, because, um, it just takes up a lot of our time and energy, but it’s also a really, really great month, uh, for The Rose.
It’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Every month we pick a different theme. And so I guess that’s where I’d like to start off with just talking about the theme and then we can get into all the fun stuff that we do. But first of all, the, we pick a theme and we really try to. We try to focus on that theme for the entire month, whether it’s, um, third party events or our internal employee events. Um, we try to remember this theme and this theme, we are going to roll out, drum roll, the theme of, uh, thank you for being a [00:02:00] friend.
Dorothy: Yes. Yes. I, I love that theme, but you know, what, why do we even do this during October? Um, it’s, it’s, you know, breast cancer is kind of a serious subject. But what we’re trying to do is make sure that folks know this is a time to remember to schedule your mammogram. You don’t have to have it in October, but you know, scheduling that mammogram takes so little time and it is so important and could mean your life. But we try to do it with a little different approach.
Elda: Yeah, and you know what I like, and one of the things I’ve learned since working here for several years is that awareness is good. And pink is good, but we always try to couple that up with action. And “thank you for being a friend” reminds us that bringing up breast cancer, talking about it with a friend, but also reminding them to get that, uh, breast cancer screening. And sometimes it’s a little bit uncomfortable to remind people, especially when that’s not the top of that’s not [00:03:00] priority, or there’s so many other things going on.
Uh, but you’re being a friend by reminding those around you, Hey, if you haven’t scheduled it. Go get it scheduled, get your mammograms done, get your screening, or if you have family history even more so, or if you have dense breasts, you know, all of those things. Not just awareness about breast cancer, but be a friend by reminding those around you to get it scheduled. I’ve even gone as far as to wait next to my friend and made sure she made the appointment. Um. I think that’s a good friend.
Dorothy: I think that’s a good friend too. And you know, we always are influenced by those people we love the most. And, and a friend is always the one that can tell you how it is.
Elda: That’s right.
Dorothy: So the other things about thank you for being a friend is that we have, we are blessed with so many friends here at The Rose. Many of them do a, you said it a while ago, third party event. What does third party event actually mean?
Elda: That’s a good question because here at The Rose, we [00:04:00] have our signature events that we put on as The Rose. We put on several events throughout the year, um, where we raise funds for the Rose as part of the development team, but then we have a lot of friends that come alongside of us and not just in October, but a lot of them are in October and they’re just friends outside of the Rose that say, Hey, we want to fundraise for you.
We want to hold a yoga class and all wear pink t shirts and raise $5 per t shirt. We’ve had third party events where they’re golf tournaments and, or they’re, uh, I’ve seen so many.
Dorothy: Barbecues.
Elda: Barbecues.
Dorothy: I mean it could be anything.
Elda: Painting their hair pink or I went to one a couple years ago and it was a group of ladies that get up really early in the morning on Saturdays and they just go work out outdoors and the day that I went out to record they said we just we have a few breast cancer survivors in our group and we couldn’t let October go by [00:05:00] without raising something and what they raised was like I think I remember it was like $150, but they were so proud and to us, well that, that still covers something here at The Rose.
Dorothy: That’s a, every dollar counts at The Rose. And this last year particularly, we had such an increase in uninsured women and men asking for help. It was just phenomenal. I cannot imagine any year that was as intense as last year with people needing help—
Elda: and, and yeah—
Dorothy: Those gifts tho every dollar means that we can help somebody else.
Elda: It just speaks to our mission, doesn’t it, Dorothy? That it doesn’t just take the bigger organizations or grants or, or, or the bigger donations. It’s the small grains of sand that end up piling up into what we see at the beach, uh, you know, just completely covering, because I go back to the story, uh, there was this young lady, her name was Mia, and Mia decided a few years back, uh, [00:06:00] that her mother had, uh, lost a friend to breast cancer, and she said, I saw how my mother struggled with this and I really want to do something about it.
So she ordered these little plastic bracelets and put on there like a little pink ribbon. And she started selling them at school and her parents helped her. And again, I think she, her goal was to raise enough to pay for one screening mammogram. And by the end she paid, she was able to raise enough for three screening mammograms.
Dorothy: Oh yeah.
Elda: And when she came and gave you that check, I mean, you would have thought she conquered the world. And actually she did.
Dorothy: And she did. Yes, yes.
Elda: For the person she helped, she did. And we give, it’s beautiful that October gives that opportunity to our friends to raise these funds and really make a difference at The Rose.
Dorothy: You’ve covered so many things. The other things that we do are internal.
Elda: Yes.
Dorothy: Because, you know, The Rose would be nothing without our employees . I always tell our, our team that you’re The Rose, not me, [00:07:00] not, not anybody in administration. You are The Rose. You’re the one that the patients see, that they speak with, and your encouragement can go such a long ways.
So one of the things that we have is, of course, pink days, and we have an incredible friend, Corky Turner, from Casa Olé, who I think for now going on 20 years has provided our staff on National Mammography Day an entirely catered, uh, Mexican lunch. Everyone looks forward to it. His fajitas are just so good.
And, and I keep saying, Corky this is a lot because he also provides Christmas, our holiday dinner. And I keep thinking, how does he keep doing this? It’s his gift to The Rose.
Elda: Oh, and he looks so happy to do it every time he comes.
Dorothy: Yes, and his team is there, and we have some favorites.
Elda: Yes.
Dorothy: Oh yes, that’s really a special day. But [00:08:00] another thing, and I think your department started it with the coloring.
Elda: Yes, coloring pages.
Dorothy: Yes.
Elda: So one of the things that we started with last year, and um, it, it just turned out so well, and this year we want to go even bigger this October, but we created personalized coloring pages. Some of them have just a lot of pink ribbons, depending on what the message is, so they can choose whether they want to color just, you know, a pink ribbon, and it says, you know, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and it has The Rose, and their, their children color it, and then we place it all over The Rose.
So last October we had Walls covered in just all these coloring pages where the patients were sitting and outside. But we also have the option of having a message that they want to give a breast cancer survivor. And so we had a few of those turned in where some they would write like personalized encouraging messages for our breast cancer survivors, and those are, are being put into the, the little bags we give away to breast cancer [00:09:00] survivors.
And so this year we’re going to be bigger. We did that sort of internal and we sort of sent it out. This year we’re gonna go to the neighboring, uh, elementary schools and different organizations and giving, giving that option to them in September so that by October we can get those back. So we’re going bigger and it looks to be resonating very well.
Dorothy: So unless we primarily ask our employees to—
Elda: Correct.
Dorothy: Go to their, their children’s schools.
Elda: And they were actually the ones that started, yeah, they were the ones that actually started taking it to the schools and things like that.
Dorothy: Right. So if any school is hearing this. And they want to do this, we can make that happen.
Elda: Yeah, just email [email protected] and we will make sure we can send you a PDF, right? And you just need to print it out. And then we can either come by and pick up those copies happily, or you can drop them off here at The Rose anytime in October. And actually it could be after October, especially if they’re specialized, encouraging messages to our breast cancer survivors, because we need those at all times.
Dorothy: So another thing that we do is we have our : huge pink ribbon that we have smaller pink ribbons that [00:10:00] anyone can purchase and leave a message. And in honor of, by memory of, and it goes on that and many times we’re front and back covered.
Elda: Yes.
Dorothy: Yes, but that raised one year, I think about $6,000.
Elda: Well, I’m glad you remember how much I was trying to remember because I knew it was in the thousands.
Dorothy: And that’s at both centers.
Elda: So this is a ribbon, a big styrofoam ribbon that sits out by the front desk, and you can purchase this and donate whatever amount to get a ribbon and write on there who it’s for.
You know what really touched me after I started working here when I found out that sometimes those ribbons are purchased by an uninsured patient that came through, and and was sponsored, so they were sponsored and they were so touched by the fact that we were able to sponsor their mammogram, that they will take out $1, $2, $5, and say, look, I know my mammogram was covered but I am so grateful that I’m going to pay for this ribbon, put it up. And to me, that’s like them adding another grain of sand to a big pile. And [00:11:00] it’s just, it’s so special.
Dorothy: You know, I’m so glad you brought that up. So many people don’t realize that all of our sponsored people are working. Sometimes holding two jobs. Still cannot afford insurance. And usually hesitate to even ask us for help.
Elda: That’s probably the hardest part for them.
Dorothy: Yeah, yeah, and that’s what we’re here for.
Elda: Yes, and that’s what October’s about, right?
Dorothy: That’s what October is about. And that’s another part that we want to be sure people understand. If you have someone you know who is low income, needs a mammogram, we, we want them to apply for our program. It’s, it’s helped so many. Over 8,000 women and a few men last year. So, you know, this is a very robust program. It is one of the few that actually is available to the uninsured and we offered it both centers and on our, our mobile coaches. So, you know, there’s just no reason for [00:12:00] anyone, especially during this special month—
Post-Credits: Especially during October—
Dorothy: —to not go ahead and get that mammogram.
Elda: Yes. And I would like to say that at the end of the day, as a marketer, I am part of the marketing department. The call to action for October is, yes, bring awareness, but I would say the call to action is A, get someone to schedule a mammogram. Make that your goal, whether it’s your mom, your sister, whether it’s your brother, your husband that maybe felt a lump and they haven’t done anything about it.
Make it your mission to at least get one person to sign up for their mammogram. It doesn’t have to be in October, by the way. And then the second thing is, What can you do to help, whether that be a dollar, two dollars, five dollars, you can help in some way by donating or, um, by reminding others, this is the third one, that whether they have insurance or don’t have insurance, The Rose exists specifically to help those women.
Dorothy: Right.
Elda: Same excellent care for insured [00:13:00] as we do for the uninsured.
Dorothy: That’s right. That is so true. Thank you so much for being with us today, Elda. I think we’ve got an exciting October planned and we love it when our patients come in and take part of it. And again, you know, thank you for being a friend.
Post-Credits: Thank you for joining us today on Let’s Talk About Your Breasts. This podcast is produced by Speke Podcasting and brought to you by The Rose. Visit therose.org to learn more about our organization, subscribe to our podcast, share episodes with friends, and join the conversation on social media using #Let’sTalkAboutYourBreasts. We welcome your feedback and suggestions. Consider supporting The Rose. Your gift can make the difference to a person in need. And remember, self care is not selfish, it’s essential.
