Support PINK October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month

By Guest Blogger, Donna DeClemente, Donna's Promo Talk

The month of October is starting to wind down and we have been enjoying many of the beautiful fall colors here in western New York. We're also still seeing quite a bit of PINK since October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. I usually dedicate a least one "PINK" post to highlight some of the brands and organizations that have been supporting the cause. So here's a few I've seen this year.

The first signs of PINK come from watching NFL football. I think it's great that the league and the NFL Players Association get behind this cause. But it still strikes me funny seeing these big football players, along with the coaches and referees, wearing pink gear. The NFL's campaign, "A Crucial Catch", is in partnership with the American Cancer Society and is focused on the importance of annual screenings.

All Pink apparel worn at games will be auctioned off at NFL Auction with proceeds benefiting the American Cancer Society's Community Health Advocates National Grants for Empowerment (CHANGE) program. The CHANGE program provides outreach and breast cancer screenings to women in under served communities. You can support the cause by purchasing some of this pink gear and apparel at the NFL Shop.

Yoplait's Save Lids to Save Lives program is back and has expanded to include many more General Mills brands such as Cherrio's and Fiber One. Click here to see all participating products. I always look for an excuse to buy more Yoplait, whether it's this cause or a coupon. For every lid or code submitted, General Mills will donate 10 cents to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, up to $2,500,000!

Caribou Coffee is selling its Amy's Blend coffee, tea, and other products as a tribute to their Roastmaster Amy Erickson who passed away from breast cancer. 10% of the sales will go to the nonprofit organization CancerCare. The products are available in stores and online through November 7th. Plus, for every "Like" that Caribou's Facebook page receives, they will donate an additional dollar.

I am lucky to have a Viking Range in our kitchen along with a husband that cooks up some amazing meals with it. We actually redesigned the kitchen around this stove. The Viking Range Corp. has partnered with the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) to auction off a Pink Viking 3D range along with it's matching ventilation hood. This E-bay auction runs until Oct. 25 with 100% of the proceeds going to the NBCF.

Driscoll's, my favorite berry brand, is sponsoring the Berry Pink Sweepstakes in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month and is offering a chance to win two Pink Kitchen Aid Mixers. The antioxidants in berries are known to help prevent the development of cancer since they protect cells from free-radical damage. So go on and eat more of those strawberries, blueberries and raspberries!

Before the month is over please make sure you support some of these brands and organizations. It's so important that women get their annual screenings. We all have personal stories to share. Last year two of my friends each had double mastectomy surgery are now doing very well. Unfortunately though I lost my mother over two years ago to breast cancer. Getting my annual screening is now a major priority and will be for my two daughters as they get older.

Hopefully with all the research and communications encouraging early screening we will begin to see a decrease in the amount of women this cancer affects.