We’re all in for the MORE THAN PINK Walk. Join us today!

No April Fool’s joke here … we’ve made some major changes to our big bold event!

Our inaugural MORE THAN PINK Walks (formerly Race for the Cure) will be held:

• in Wichita at Towne East Square Mall on 09.28.2019 (Click here)
• in Kansas City at Black & Veatch on 10.05.2019 (Click here)

Susan G. Komen’s MORE THAN PINK Walk is our commitment to go beyond breast cancer awareness and take ACTION. As our signature fundraising event, the MORE THAN PINK Walk is where we put aside everything else in our lives to share our stories, our laughter and our tears; to raise money to saves lives. Together we are more than one person dealing with this devastating disease, we are a community fighting back.

We’re all in. Join us.

New for this year …

• The event is a Walk … The biggest difference is that the MORE THAN PINK Walk will not have a run element. We’re focusing on making the event a walk – which reflects the vast majority of our participants historically – to create a greater sense of community among participants and to provide a more personalized, emotional experience for all who attend. And by focusing on the walk, we can maximize the amount of funds raised by the event available to support our work to save lives and end breast cancer.
• Fundraise for a t-shirt … the MORE THAN PINK Walk is a fundraising event. The more we raise the more we can support our community. It’s that simple. Any participant who raises $100 or more will receive an inaugural MORE THAN PINK Walk t-shirt. Participants who raise more than $1,000 and/or Team Captains who raise more than $2,500 as a team will be invited to our new VIP Fundraising Tent.
• Learn more about Komen … You will see a robust focus on the four core pillars of Susan G. Komen: Research, Care, Community, Action. Each pillar has a color it corresponds to and will be highlighted throughout Event Day. Special tents with a deeper explanation of how we implement these pillars will be located throughout the Expo. Learn about our Research. See how we support Care for those we serve. Witness the community coming together to raise funds. Take action to ensure no one has to deal with this disease on their own.

For more on the MORE THAN PINK Walks go to www.komenkswmo.org/walk.

Click here to register for one or both walks TODAY!

Amy Patel Named 2019 Biggest BigWig

Dr. Amy Patel was named Biggest BigWig at the 2019 Susan G. Komen Kansas & Western Missouri BigWigs Happy Hour Celebration last week. Patel was one of six inaugural BigWigs crowdfunding to support the lifesaving work done by Susan G. Komen. She raised more than $4,800 as part of the affiliate-wide campaign that generated nearly $40,000 between Giving Tuesday & February 21, 2019.

“I feel so honored and honestly, just grateful to all of those who contributed to my campaign,” Patel said during the Happy Hour at Boulevard Brewing Company. “The reason (I wanted to serve) is simple; I live this every day. As a breast radiologist, I see the struggles women are facing in this part of the state with access to care, including financial disparities, transportation issues, and numerous other challenges which leads to either no evaluation or evaluation when breast cancer has already progressed when we could have detected and treated it early.” Patel was joined by friends, family members and colleagues from Liberty Hospital where she works as the Medical Director of Liberty Hospital Women’s Imaging

“Our goal was to collect a group of women and men dedicated to raising critical funds to support the work we do at Komen,” said Maddison Watkins, Director of Community Outreach. “Amy took on that challenge and exceeded our goals with her energy, tenacity, and results. Our BigWigs shined bright as they served as ambassadors for the work we do at Komen. They involvement was engaging and connected us to many others who hadn’t previously been involved with our organization,” she added.

Funds will still be collected through March 31, 2019, to support the BigWigs campaign. To see all six BigWigs and read about their “Why?” click here.

“It’s so crucial to support organizations like Komen in our fight because honestly, many women’s lives literally depend on it. I was proud to be a part of such an incredible campaign, and I encourage you to spread our message in the community as we continue to work tirelessly towards saving the most lives,” Patel said from the podium after receiving her award.

Watkins said funds raised during the BigWigs campaign will enhance their existing community grants program, support funding for their mobile mammography partnership with Diagnostic Imaging Centers, and will serve to enhance education and awareness efforts throughout Western Missouri and all of Kansas.

The 2019 BigWigs Happy Hour Celebration was the first event hosted by the newly merged Komen Kansas & Western Missouri. Komen Greater Kansas City & Komen Kansas merged efforts last fall to maximize efficiencies and minimize overhead as they worked to reduce breast cancer mortality by 50%.

For more about the new Komen Kansas & Western Missouri go to komenkswmo.org.