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Pink Moments The capital city is home to the largest Race for the CureŽ in the country, drawing 28,000 walkers and runners to the Downtown 5K event each year. In addition to raising awareness about researching, treating and curing breast cancer, it also raises funds: 100 percent of the race’s net proceeds go back to Komen Columbus and the national Susan G. Komen program. Read on to meet four individuals who are heavily involved with the Columbus race and learn why they dedicate their time each year.
Photo: Chris Russell
Stories by Emma Frankart Henterly Photos by Rob Hardin
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MAY 2017 Columbus Monthly
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Kyra Pruitt-White AGE: 49 RESIDENCE: Pickerington BIO: Showroom manager at Value City Furniture, 2017 honorary chairperson for Komen Columbus, involved in Komen’s Worship in Pink program, wife, mother, grandmother VITALS: Seven-year survivor of triple-negative breast cancer WHY I RACE: “I have been involved in the Komen race, I would say for the last 15 to 16 years. Before I was a breast cancer survivor, I was already working with Value City Furniture on their committee—organizing, raising money; we had a health fair booth down at the race every year. We have been involved with Komen 20 years. It was just the job that got me involved, just doing something to give back to the community. I never thought that I would be diagnosed or going through the horrible disease myself. I go down to the race just to be down there with the different women, to embrace, to hug—we’ve cried together. Women that I didn’t even know. Cried together or maybe I just give them a word of encouragement, just to say that ‘You will get through it, you will make it. I’m a survivor of seven years.’ I asked God, ‘Why me?’ when I was going through everything. But now I know why me: So that I can just represent how good God is and also just let ladies know that they could make it through this.”
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There is no routine mammogram. When it comes to mammograms, routine just isn’t enough. That’s because routine applies only to what’s predictable, straightforward and logical. And breast cancer simply isn’t. At The James, our radiologists read only mammograms, all day, every day. They’re trained to detect the nuances that people who don’t read mammograms all day might miss. It’s that level of expertise that results in prevention, detection and peace of mind that are far beyond routine. Don’t get a routine mammogram. Get a James mammogram. To schedule yours, call 800-240-4477 or visit cancer.osu.edu/mammo-appt.
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Michael Broidy AGE: 62 RESIDENCE: Bexley BIO: Senior vice president at Schottenstein Stores Corp., husband, father VITALS: Mother, who passed away in 2016 at age 102, was a breast cancer survivor WHY I RACE: “I’m one of 300 of our Schottenstein Stores Corp./Value City Furniture/ Schottenstein Property Group associates who walk or run in the race every year. I can tell you, without any equivocation, this issue is very important to our company and all of our associates. Unfortunately, we’ve lost a few of our associates to breast cancer over the years. We have some associates who have been diagnosed and are able to work and live with the disease. Thanks to Jay Schottenstein and his family, we have supported this cause as a company for 20 years, a cause that I have been fortunate to lead. It is thanks to their commitment to giving back to the community that we can do what we do. We try to make sure that it’s never a financial issue for any of our associates to participate in the race. And we take time out of our work during the months of April and May to do Race for the Cure® activities that encourage all of our associates to be involved in either an educational aspect—learning more about breast cancer—or some fun aspect that gets them to be more sensitive and more aware of the issue.”
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trusted names,
mission: fighting cancer.
Together, we’re working to turn cancer ribbons into symbols of victory. Great care is made even better when it’s close to home. That’s why OhioHealth and MD Anderson Cancer Network®, a program of MD Anderson Cancer Center, are determined to raise the standard of cancer care across Ohio. Through this collaboration, OhioHealth provides more cancer treatment options, more hope and personalized treatment plans to each and every patient locally, with access to select clinical trials from MD Anderson, one of the nation’s top-ranked cancer centers. One day, every cancer ribbon will be a symbol of victory. Until then, we keep fighting.
Make a personal connection at CancerCall 1 (800) 752.9119 or visit OhioHealth.com/Cancer
© OhioHealth Inc. 2017. All rights reserved. FY17-116-1-24. 04/17.
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April Vandervort AGE: 50 RESIDENCE: Gahanna BIO: Vice president of Life and Annuity Operations at Nationwide Insurance, Komen board member (three years) and newly elected board president, wife, mother VITALS: Mother and aunt were diagnosed with breast cancer one month apart; lost mother and paternal grandmother to the disease WHY I RACE: “When I found out my mother had breast cancer 16 years ago, it really affected me. I really wanted to make sure I’m living the healthiest lifestyle possible, so I started running. A few months went by and I said, ‘I want to do a 5K event.’ So decided that I would train and I would run my first 5K, the Komen Race for the Cure, in honor of my mother, as well as her sister. And it became sort of a big family event. Then I began volunteering for the Race for the Cure and served in several positions; today, I’m responsible for the logistics committee. My son is very involved in the race too. I am really proud of him. He’s been volunteering for the race since he was 15. It’s interesting to think back—I’d never run, I’d never done a 5K, anything like that, and so that all came about because of my mother’s diagnosis. We lost her 10 years ago, and each year we celebrate her life at the Race for the Cure. It’s something I will always find time for. I really feel like the work that we do through the Komen organization truly makes a difference in peoples’ lives.”
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S C H E D U L E A M A M M O G R A M TO DAY. YO U R TO M O R ROWS W I L L T H A N K YO U FO R I T. At Mount Carmel, we understand that taking the best care of you today means the healthiest possible tomorrow. That’s why we recommend annual screening mammograms for women beginning at age forty. Our dedicated team of breast health specialists provides the highest level of skill in screening mammography, diagnosis and, when necessary, individualized treatment and therapy. It’s why women throughout Central Ohio trust the experts at Mount Carmel for the very best in personalized care.
CONVENIENTLY SCHEDULE YOUR MAMMOGRAM with our online scheduling tool at mountcarmelhealth.com or by calling 614-234-2900
Let’s take care of you today, so tomorrow can be even better.
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Craig Sivers AGE: 34 RESIDENCE: Powell BIO: Director of business operations at Aerotek, Komen Columbus board member, husband, father VITALS: Wife’s grandmother died of breast cancer, and her aunt is a survivor WHY I RACE: “My wife’s grandma was very involved in raising her; she was like a mom to her. And her aunt is her godmother; she really looks up to her as well. For me, it’s personal for the fact that I have a wife and a daughter now; I never want to see my wife or daughter go through that. I got involved with Komen about five years ago, when Aerotek started running a charity golf outing. Every year we’re maxing out at 30 teams, and as we continue doing it we get a little more creative in what we’re doing to raise money. We get hole sponsorships, we’ve gotten a lot of donations in the Columbus area for raffle items and auction items. And we always have a race team here from Aerotek—that’s another big part of what we do—so we always do our golf outing the day before the race and then we all go to the race the next day. I also belong to a group called the Pink Tie Guys; it’s men who get together monthly to raise money to support breast cancer. And what we’re looking for, all the time, is men who are interested in joining this group to continue growing.”
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Congratulations Michael A. Caligiuri, MD, Newly Elected President of the American Association for Cancer Research
The members of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) have elected Dr. Michael A. Caligiuri, director of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center and CEO of The James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, as their president for 2017-2018. The AACR is the world’s first and largest organization focused on cancer research with more than 37,000 members in 108 countries. Dr. Caligiuri is a world-renowned physicianscientist, known for his work in immunology that is focused on human natural killer cells for the treatment of leukemia, myeloma and glioblastoma. For almost a century, the AACR has been advancing cancer research. As president, Dr. Caligiuri will focus on cancer health disparities and the power of big data to transform cancer care.
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Caligiuri by sending him a message at: cancer.osu.edu/AACRPresident