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Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Passes Race Baton
Five Inspiring Women Take Charge of January 2010 S. Fla. Event
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., (January 5, 2009) – The South Florida Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® (www.komensouthflorida.org) has announced the 2010 Race Committee Leadership, a team of women personally inspired to lead the 19th Annual Susan G. Komen South Florida Race for the Cure® in January. They are: Patricia Abramson, chairwoman; Stephanie Moak Siegel, honorary chairwoman; and Adrianne Weissman, consulting chairwoman. Karen List and Sandy Spender are co-chairs who will assist Abramson this year and gear up to chair the 2011 Komen South Florida Race for the Cure. All five women will dedicate countless hours, working together to make this one of the best races to date.
Komen for the Cure is the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists. Komen South Florida Race for the Cure, set for January 30, is the largest fundraiser for the South Florida Affiliate and has the distinction of being the first race of the year among all affiliates. The Race is now accepting Sponsorship Applications and Race Registration for participants will begin October 1. The Affiliate serves Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie counties.
Patricia Abramson: Race Chair Abramson’s goal for this year’s event: increase participation to at least 23,000 participants, up from 22,000, and boost fundraising. “I would like to see everybody raise just $10 more than their participation fee. Everyone can make this a success,” she said. Abramson, diagnosed with breast cancer four years ago, has been involved with the Race for a decade – starting as a volunteer cheering on Race participants and stepping up her role after a close friend’s diagnosis. She credits involvement with Komen for saving her own life, and for instilling the importance of early detection and yearly mammograms. “My story was so much simpler because of early detection,” Abramson said. Her mission is to spread the message to groups including women under 40 who are being touched more frequently by the disease. Abramson, a buyer for Evelyn & Arthur, and husband Larry have three children. In June, the entire family participated in the Susan G. Komen Global Race for the Cure® in Washington D.C.
Stephanie Moak Siegel: Honorary Chair Siegel is a member of the Komen Advocacy Alliance Board in Washington, D.C. The Komen Advocacy Alliance mission is to translate the promise to end breast cancer into action at all levels of government to discover and deliver the cures. Siegel represents the global expansion of the organization’s reach. “We are advocating for lasting change and giving a voice to cancer survivors around the world,” Siegel said. It was the vision of Siegel and her husband Ned that brought Komen to The Bahamas. A businesswoman and philanthropist, Siegel lived in The Bahamas, working side-by-side with Ned during his tenure as U.S. Ambassador. She shared her own battle with breast cancer – ultimately undergoing a double mastectomy – in the country where nearly 50 percent of women under 50 are diagnosed with the disease. Upon arrival in 2007, Siegel served as the inspiration for The Bahamas Breast Cancer Initiative and the BBCI Foundation, where she actively spoke out for education, early detection and care for all women of The Bahamas. Siegel, a former designer and couture buyer who later became involved in business and real estate investment ventures, lives in Boca Raton with her husband. They have three children.
Adrianne Weissman: Consulting Chair Weissman, who led the 2009 Race in South Florida, is Sponsorship Chair as well as advisor. She became involved with Komen 12 years ago after a friend asked her to walk and has since served as a volunteer and sponsor and chaired numerous committees. The president of Evelyn & Arthur clothing stores, Weissman believes she has a responsibility to get involved, because many of her customers have had breast cancer. The Race is a significant event for the Affiliate as 75 percent of the money raised stays in South Florida and is used for free mammograms, education and grants for patient navigators among other things, Weissman said, adding, “We are a huge provider of funds.” Twenty-five percent of funds raised goes to the national organization for breast cancer research. Weissman and husband Fred have two daughters.
About Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying sister, Susan G. Komen, she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer forever. In 1982, that promise became Susan G. Komen for the Cure and launched the global breast cancer movement. Today, Komen for the Cure is the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists fighting to save lives, empower people, ensure quality care for all and energize science to find the cures. Thanks to events like the Komen Race for the Cure®, we have invested more than $1.3 billion to fulfill our promise, becoming the largest source of nonprofit funds dedicated to the fight against breast cancer in the world. For more information about Susan G. Komen for the Cure, breast health or breast cancer, visit www.komen.org or call 1-877 GO KOMEN.