Bras on the corners in downtown Greenville give
breast cancer patients a boost
Greenville, Texas -- A Texas community has a deep commitment to ensure no one going through breast cancer treatment has to be alone and unable to meet the needs of her medical care. This commitment comes to light in the annual event, “Bras for the Cause.”
Hosted by the Hunt County seat in Greenville, Texas, this one evening of hanging bras out on the city sidewalks and in the local stores has created a unique atmosphere of caring and understanding for cancer stricken county residents.
The brainchild of Janeen Cunningham and first hosted by her store, the Calico Cat, “Bras for the Cause” has become the impetus for not only creating a special fitting room, Janice’s Closet, at the Hunt Regional Medical Center but also the financial catalyst for the medical supplies within the room.
Downtown Greenville will become a showcase on October 13 for all the bra creations decorated to promote awareness of the need for medical care for breast cancer patient. Elaborately decorated bras are put on display and anyone can participate in not only the entries but in the voting process to declare a winner that night.
Anyone who wants to get involved and enter a decorated bra is welcome. Popular past creations have been made with paint, fabric, beads, jewels, feathers, and even copper. It’s a chance to be creative, use and represent your hobby, business, special interests or your personality. Do a pun or play on words surrounding bras, the only requirement is to keep it all “G” rated.
And don’t forget to give your entry a clever title. If you are having trouble coming up with ideas, check out the photos of last year’s bras at www.calicocatgreenville.com. There will be plenty of people to help with that also when you register your entry.
This year, entries are to be turned in at Landon Winery, 2508 Lee St., on Tuesday and Wednesday, October 11-12, from 11:00am to 8:00 p.m. To help keep your bra in perfect condition, try delivering it in a box or covered in a plastic bag.
The evening of fun begins downtown at 6 p.m on Oct. 13. During the voting hours, everyone can decide which bra is their favorite and through their purchased ballots, make a vote. A vote only costs one dollar. Those ballots will be available at Calico Cat and then by taking a stroll between the Blue Armadillo Winery, the Uptown Forum and Landon’s Winery, all the bras can be seen. Ballots can be returned to the Uptown Forum or given to one of the designated committee runners and tallied.
The non-profit beneficiary of the event is the Hunt Regional Healthcare Foundation. All of the money raised will go to help provide supplies for Janice’s Closet, such as wigs and breast prostheses. Janice’s Closet, located at Hunt Regional Medical Center (HRMC), is a fitting room for mastectomy products for Hunt County residents unable to provide these items for themselves.
Whether it’s creating an entry or enjoying the night’s event, this is by no means a Ladies only event. It’s a time for everyone to contribute a bra or make a vote, but most importantly, being together to support this important program.
One way for everyone to help is to invite a friend, co-worker or family member to join you on this night and bring those dollar bills in to vote.
“I think this will be something that both men and women enjoy,” said Janeen Cunningham, owner of the Calico Cat and Bras for the Cause Chairperson. “I expect the creations to be humorous, artistic, entertaining and more.”
“We had such a variety of winners last year, even our male artist creations garnered some of the largest votes, “ said Cunningham.
The winner(s) will be announced at Landon Winery at 8:45 p.m. In addition, the artist who raises the most money will be announced.
Corporate sponsors have already committed to providing the display boards for the creations. There are bragging rights within that group, as the board sponsor earning the largest amount of votes that evening, gets to take home a traveling trophy, a crystal loving cup. That honor is currently held by Greenville Electric Utility Systems. The Bras for the Cause committee has even insured a special thank you that evening for those Corporate Bra Board Sponsors.
Mary Dirickson, a Hunt County resident and cancer patient, was the first to receive a fitting in Janice’s Closet. Dirickson had many good things to say about the service provided, especially about Martha Hamilton, HRMC’s certified mastectomy fitter.
“The experience was unreal,” said Dirickson. “Martha was so kind and courteous.”
It should be a night where everyone can enjoy a fun event in downtown Greenville and do something special for women with breast cancer. It doesn’t matter if you vote with $1 or with $1,000, it all goes to the program. Not one cent of the money donated to Bras for the Cause goes to host the event, that all comes through other donations.
For more information, contact Janeen Cunningham at 903.408.9923, or by email at brasforthecause@uptownforum.net. You can also find more information at www.calicocatgreenville.com or on Facebook – Bras for the Cause, Greenville, TX.