Celebration Makes Cancer

A Legislative Priority

Newtown residents Ivette Gerics, Lynda Russo, Amy Dent, and Dawn Escoda attended Celebration on the Hill as American Cancer Society Ambassadors recently at Bushnell Park in Hartford.

They were joined by three Relay For Life team captains, Nicole Escoda, Bev Maley, and Haley Russo. Celebration on the Hill is an American Cancer Society grassroots event to celebrate cancer survivorship and empower its volunteers to become a political force in the fight against cancer in Hartford and in communities across Connecticut.

More than 200 volunteer community ambassadors from across the state went to Hartford to talk to state legislators about the importance of cancer policy, to put a face on and give a voice to the fight against cancer and improve awareness of the American Cancer Society’s legislative fight against cancer.

They asked state legislators to help reduce the cancer burden by supporting measures that increase funding for the Breast and Cervical Early Detection Program by $1 million (more than one in six women over 40 in the state do not receive the recommended mammograms). They also asked that the legislature allocate $1 million to develop a statewide clinical trials network. At present, the state of Connecticut lacks the capacity to adequately enroll patients into area clinical trials programs.

During the course of the 12-hour event, individuals walked together around a track, visited tents showcasing county exhibits, and participated in a vivid luminaria ceremony at the base of the capital

Three easy steps were spelled out by the ambassadors in the campaign against cancer:

The stroke of a pen — Write a letter to your representative;

The push of a button — A personal phone call is the fastest, easiest way to let your lawmakers know about cancer;

The click of a mouse — Connect with lawmakers through the worldwide web.

For more information view www.cancer.org or call 800-ACS-2345.