Side-Out Foundation

Dealing With Fear

2012-02-21T17:38:35Z

The below story was read at the 2012 Capitol Hill Classic.

Boxer and actor Randall “Tex” Cobb once said “Courage isn’t the absence of fear; it’s the dealing with it.” Fear has the potential to motivate and encourage you, something Julie Matthews understands well. Julie is the special projects coordinator at The Side-Out Foundation, the non-profit organization behind the Dig Pink events. She is also a two-time cancer survivor.

In 2005, Julie returned from a trip to Quito, Ecuador, pale and fatigued. What should have been a celebratory post-graduate school vacation had been an exhausting two week sentence in a foreign country. Everyone assumed it was altitude sickness, but blood tests suggested something far more alarming. Within an hour or so of her visit to the emergency room, Julie was diagnosed with leukemia, a cancer of the blood.

Fear overwhelmed not only Julie, but her family and friends as well. How could a 27-year-old healthy young woman suddenly have cancer? She was immediately admitted to the hospital, where she lived for almost a month while she received chemotherapy and multiple blood and platelet transfusions.

What helped Julie and her loved ones cope was acknowledging the fear that pervaded each day and asking themselves what they could do to suppress it. Julie’s biggest fear was the future. Would she survive this illness? If she survived it, would she ever truly feel well again? Would she be able to start her own family someday?

She allowed herself to cry and to think about the worst case scenario, which would be death. She then asked herself, “What can I do to prevent it”? Her answer was always the same: listen to the doctors, learn to understand how her body should feel, eat well, walk her daily 20 laps around the ward and visualize healing and remission. Aside from that, she had no control over the outcome. When Julie and her family learned to accept the uncertain, they were free to appreciate the certainties: the refreshing joy of laughter, the comfort of a hug, the unbridled enthusiasm of Julie’s beloved dogs, to mention just a few.

Julie went into remission not long after her chemotherapy began. Three and a half years later, she relapsed. She received a stem cell transplant from one of her sisters who was a perfect cellular match. It has been 3 years and 4 months since her transplant and she is doing well. Although she was disappointed not to be here to share her story with you personally, she is delighted to be spending the weekend babysitting her 1-year-old niece. Several years ago, she wasn’t sure she would ever have the opportunity to meet future nieces and nephews.

Julie’s story reminds us that fear can be managed and courage created, a lesson that can be applied to any situation. Remember your own strength as you play this weekend and accept your fears as a crucial element to building courage.
Julie is a big fan of quotes and she asked that I finish this talk with one from Thucydides: “The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out and meet it.”

Now let’s go tame some fears and claim some glory!!

Breast Cancer Webinar

2012-02-06T21:28:23Z

Life with Cancer® presents the San Antonio Breast Cancer Treatment Update with Dr. Nicholas Robert Monday, Februrary 27, 2012, Noon-1 PM EST. Click here for more details and to register for the webinar.

Official 2012 Dig Pink Tour Stops

2012-02-17T22:04:02Z

Join the following tournaments as they strive to…

Make a Statement. Educate. Raise Funds.

MLK Memphis — January 28-29
ASICS President’s Day Classic — February 18-20
Capitol Hill Classic — February 18-20
TVA Omaha Classic — February 18-19
Colorado Crossroads — February 25-27 and March 2-4
Lids Team Sports Mideast Qualifier — March 16-18 (St. Louis, MO) and March 23-25 (Indianapolis, IN)
Big South — March 30-April 1
JVA World Challenge — March 30-April 1
ASICS Northeast Qualifier — March 31-April 2 (NEQ 1, Baltimore, MD), April 6-8 (NEQ 2 North, Baltimore, MD) and April 7-9 (NEQ 2 South, National Harbor, MD)
Pinnacle Juniors Dig Pink II — April 15
ASICS East Coast Championships — May 26-28
GEVA Regional Tournament

Small Town Team-Big Time Goals

2012-01-24T19:46:28Z

by Sarah Hemminger
Carlow University

Many young adults feel overwhelmed and insignificant as they ponder thoughts of what life past high school will hold for them. The pressure of college and career choices can seem daunting and insurmountable. I felt exactly this way during the summer of 2010. I had no idea that my love for volleyball, the support of my small town community and the hand of God would clearly define my life’s path within a few short months.

The 2010 Somerset Dig Pink Event changed me, my teammates and gave my community a confidence in its youth that had previously not been exhibited. During our early summer Dig Pink planning sessions the team set realistic fundraising goals, we could not have imagined that our efforts would nearly double the initial goal.

Amid a week of college tours for my planned engineering major, I began to have health problems. With volleyball camp and my senior year just days away, I found myself hospitalized for an emergency appendix removal and subsequent complications. In one devastating week, I went from planning to crush volleyballs to simply being crushed. My senior volleyball season was lost. This blessing in disguise literaily forced me to slow down and begin focusing on others. Since I couldn’t lead my team on the court I poured my heart and soul into our senior project Dig Pink Event.

My team of eight seniors girls only needed the rudder my injury provided to reach a goal no one thought possible in a very small, economically challenged town like Somerset. My injury prevented me from showing a pig I had raised through 4H at our County Fair, so my grandmother kindly bought it and donated it to our Dig Pink event. We solicited other business donations and with the freezer of pork, we had a very successful raffle event. Coin collection containers at businesses all over the county were a great way to raise money and also get breast cancer pamphlets from the local oncology unit distributed. I met with the Mayor to get borough approval for the first ever Dig Pink Coin Toss held on the streets of our uptown. Because we are a Pennsylvania Turnpike exit we received donations and encouragement from people all over the world. lt was an electrifying experience for our team and the media coverage that ensued brought with it breast cancer articles in local and school newspapers. Bake good sales and theme baskets raffles set the stage for our event. We asked the community to help us “Black Out” Breast Cancer and designed and sold original t-shirts.

On the evening of October 25, 20I0 our local gymnasium was truly blacked out! Everyone, including the opposing team and their parents, wore black. When game time arrived, we turned off the gym lights and everyone activated the individual glow sticks they were given upon entering the gym. Words can’t describe the amazing energy present in that gym as we shared statistics on breast cancer and patient survival. In an atmosphere of hundreds of silent people all holding glow sticks, I was so very proud to be chosen by my team to welcome everyone and reveal our fundraising efforts. When I announced that we had surpassed $7,000 in donations the whole town erupted. No one will ever remember who won that game because breast cancer research was the winner. My team won the appreciation and respect of our entire community because we never stopped trying to reach an insurmountable goal.

Following our graduation, all eight volleyball seniors said that the feeling of the Dig Pink Event was their favorite high school accomplishment. For me personally, the engineering career I had planned changed to a calling to become a nurse. I am currently in the Honors Nursing Program at Carlow University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and after spending time at the Somerset Oncology Center, I am considering a career in oncology nursing.

In a small town like mine traditions are something that is easy to come by. Our volleyball team has created a legacy where our community now expects our members to raise money for breast cancer research. During this whole process I have realized that through the ups and downs in life the one thing that should stay consistent is your drive to help others. My teammates and I were able to do this on a community level and create what hopefully continues as a long standing tradition. We have proven that eight young women can make a difference in the world and that is something that will always be a part of who I am.

SOAP Award Winners Featured at AVCA Convention

2011-12-20T20:55:08Z

Side-Out Ambassador Program (SOAP) award winners were announced Thursday, December 15th. On Friday, December 16th, the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) made a special announcement of the Side-Out/AVCA National Dig Pink® Award winners at the 2011 AVCA All-America/Players of the Year Banquet at the AVCA Annual Convention.

Congratulations, Sarah, Kayleigh and Jenna on this special recognition!! To view the printed program, click here (Side-Out/AVCA National Dig Pink® Award winners are listed on the second page). Also, A big congratulations to the 2011 AVCA Division I All-Americans as well as the 2011 Players of the Year!

2011 SOAP Award Winners!!!

2011-12-15T18:54:29Z

Congratulations to the Side-Out Ambassador Program (SOAP) 2011 Award winners!!!! Each winner showed exceptional commitment to her school, community and to the ultimate goal of helping breast cancer patients and their families.

There are three different types of awards: the SOAP Scholarship Award, the SOAP Community Service Award and the Side-Out/AVCA National Dig Pink® Award. Click here for more details about the SOAP program.

The Side-Out Foundation is proud to announce the winners listed below!

Scholarship Awards

Kayleigh Vigh
Rogers High School, Wyoming, MI

Jenna Nichols
Grand Ledge High School, Grand Ledge, MI

Wendy Lemke
Chanhassen High School, Chanhassen, MN

Sarah Hemminger
Somerset Area High School, Somerset, PA

Laurie McNamara
Rice University, Houston, TX

Cosy Burnett
La Costa Canyon High School, Carlsbad, CA

Lauren Rocco
Poolesville High School, Poolesville, MD

Community Service Awards

Hannah Aboulhosn
Lake Braddock Secondary School, Burke, VA

Jenna Nichols
Grand Ledge High School, Grand Ledge, MI

Kayleigh Vigh
Rogers High School, Wyoming, MI

Lauren Rocco
Poolesville High School, Poolesville, MD

Laurie McNamara
Rice University, Houston, TX

Sara Riehle
Fox Valley Lutheran High School, Appleton, WI

Taylor Hall
Vilseck High School, Vilseck, Germany

Wendy Lemke
Chanhassen High School, Chanhassen, MN

Side-Out/AVCA National Dig Pink® Awards

Sarah Hemminger
Somerset Area High School, Somerset, PA

Kayleigh Vigh
Rogers High School, Wyoming, MI

Jenna Nichols
Grand Ledge High School, Grand Ledge, MI

New Research on Inflammatory Breast Cancer

2011-11-15T19:47:52Z

Recently, Emanuel Petriocoin and Lance Liotta of George Mason University’s (GMU) Center for Applied Proteomics & Molecular Medicine (CAPMM) discovered that activation of the protein ALK (anaplastic lymphoma kinase) is associated with inflammatory breast cancer, a particularly aggressive form of the disease: “Mason Research Gives Hope to Women With Deadliest Breast Cancer”.

Although this study was not funded by The Side-Out Foundation, Side-Out is incredibly proud to be associated with CAPMM through research in related clinical trials for breast cancer (see the Side-Out Protocol and I-SPY 2). The findings of the inflammatory breast cancer study may be put to use in the second phase of the Side-Out Protocol.

Advice from Dig Pink Veterans

2011-11-07T20:24:02Z

Originally published in the AVCA’s Phenom Magazine, Winter 2011

“I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the community,
and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can.”
~George Bernard Shaw

When it comes to hosting Dig Pink rallies, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and Desert Vista High School are considered veteran experts! Both schools have years of experience uniting their communities for The Side-Out Foundation’s Dig Pink events. Although they have each raised very large sums of money for Side-Out’s breast cancer initiatives (UNC Charlotte raised over $10,000 in 2010 and Desert Vista raised upwards of $13,000!), that is not the only way their success is measured.

Both teams are extremely active in their communities. When they combine their creativity with hard work and community involvement, they create a Dig Pink program that only gets stronger with each passing year. They offer the following advice for schools interested in building their own Dig Pink programs.

UNC Charlotte (Charlotte, NC):
Perhaps before you read the advice of some UNC Charlotte players, you should watch the 2010 Dig Pink Jail & Bail video. You can sense the team’s fun nature and feel the energy they put into the campaign.

Bianca Rouse is a junior outside hitter at UNC Charlotte. Two thousand eleven will be her third year doing Dig Pink, and she credits the success of their Dig Pink events to her team’s ability to spread the word to the community: “We take the time and we put it out there: flyers, ball games, community events. [The Dig Pink event] is also helpful in getting the word out about our team.”

Bianca stressed the willingness of her team to approach strangers for donations. This included walking the rows of a parking lot outside a Carolina Panthers football game, teaming up with Chick-fil-A to approach their customers and reaching out to the entire university community through the team’s affiliation with other sports teams.

Sheri Davis is a senior setter for UNC Charlotte. Her very wise advice is: “You have to start somewhere. Schools holding their first Dig Pink event should know that the first year will probably not be their biggest event. They should begin networking and building connections. Find someone who has experience with fundraising.”

Sheri is very thankful for the encouragement and participation of other campus groups; sororities, fraternities and various departments have made Dig Pink an important part of their community outreach. Their support has turned the Dig Pink game into the biggest crowd of the season. As she said, “it is the people and the community that make our event successful.”

Leah Leventhal, a senior outside, rightside hitter at UNC Charlotte, is getting ready for her fourth year of Dig Pink! She believes chemistry is what makes her UNC Charlotte team shine. “We’re so full of personality and I think that makes it really easy. Our coaches work really hard to make sure we have good team chemistry and this comes in handy when we’re trying to host a successful event.”

Her most essential advice is to “set goals, but not limits”: “You don’t get anywhere by saying ‘let’s try to be fourth again!’ Don’t settle for just raising $500. Really strive! People out there are willing to donate, people are willing to help. Remember that ‘no’ today doesn’t mean ‘no’ forever. Persistence is key. Also, make it fun! Make it goofy and interesting like the Jail & Bail video. Think of something creative and fun and make it your own.”

Watch this video to learn more about the UNC Charlotte volleyball team!

Desert Vista High School (Phoenix, AZ):
Watch the 2010 Dig Pink in Tukee video!

Riley Smith is a senior setter and defensive specialist at Desert Vista High School. One of her favorite aspects of the yearly Dig Pink game Desert Vista plays against their archrival Mountain Pointe is the crowd: “There are probably 2,000 people that come out to the Dig Pink game, one of the games that most people from both schools come to.”

Riley points out that the schools make the crowd a focal point during the game, engaging them in between matches with speakers and fun contests to involve children. They also created a Dig Pink trophy that is awarded to whichever team sells the most raffle tickets. Known as “Dig Pink in Tukee”, the game is the highlight of the season for Desert Vista and Mountain Pointe, the ultimate community effort.

Side-Out Partners With Team IP

2011-10-12T20:07:54Z

Fairfax, VA — October 12, 2011 — The Side-Out Foundation is pleased to announce its partnership with Team IP. Together, they created a website dedicated specifically to Dig Pink® branded merchandise, simplifying the purchasing process for teams wishing to order t-shirts, wristbands, tattoos and other Dig Pink products (www.buydigpink.com).

Randy L. Sparks, CEO and president of Team IP is excited about the partnership: “Team IP is thrilled to have The Side-Out Foundation as its non-profit partner, and is looking forward to making strides in major fundraising and awareness efforts to create a double bottom line and find the cure for breast cancer.”

Rick Dunetz, founder and executive director of The Side-Out Foundation, stresses the importance of removing merchandise management from Side-Out’s immediate responsibilities: “We are all extremely happy that Side-Out’s mission has spread throughout the nation and into Europe. Team IP’s merchandising expertise will allow us to manage the sale of Dig Pink items easily and efficiently. Most importantly though, Randy and his team understand the moral dilemma of selling breast cancer merchandise; it is not to make a personal profit. They offer a low-cost solution and are invested in our mission of making an impact on the lives of breast cancer patients and their families.”

Teams purchase Dig Pink items for themselves and also to use in fundraisers. Having Team IP on board will spread the word about Side-Out’s mission through Dig Pink apparel and products while allowing the organization to focus on the more urgent task of advancing breast cancer treatment. The percentage donated to Side-Out through each item depends on the product that is purchased, and Side-Out is confident it will make an impact in its fundraising efforts.

About Team IP
Incorporated in 1992, Team IP has three divisions: event, e-commerce, and corporate. Its event division is the #1 amateur sports merchandiser in the US. The e-commerce division utilizes DTG technology to support state of the art websites for its clients. The corporate division is a member of the Premier Group which has 400 million aggregate buying power which allows it to provide branded promotional products to its clients. Learn more by visiting www.teamip.com or www.teamipcorporate.com.

For more information, please contact Julie Matthews.

Breast Cancer Facts

2011-10-04T21:02:17Z

The below information is based on the National Cancer Institute’s “Dictionary of Cancer Terms”, Breastcancer.org and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center).

Cancer is a disease caused by abnormal cells that are growing too rapidly.

Breast cancer is cancer that forms a tumor in the tissues of the breasts, typically the ducts (tubes that carry milk to the nipple) and lobules (glands that make milk).

When breast cancer spreads, the cells remain breast cancer cells. For example, if it spreads to the lungs, the patient would be diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer, not lung cancer, because the cancer cells in the lung tumor are formed from cancerous breast cells, not lung cells.

Metastatic breast cancer refers to cancer that originated in the breast, but has spread to other parts of the body. It occurs when cells from a primary tumor (a tumor in the area where the cancer originally formed) break off and move through the bloodstream and/or the lymphatic system to other parts of the body. It is considered Stage IV breast cancer.

Women and men can both get breast cancer, however women are 100 times more likely to be diagnosed with it.

Physicians have identified genes that can be passed on in generations (BRCA1, also known as Breast Cancer gene 1 and BRCA2 or Breast Cancer gene 2), however most cases of breast cancer occur in women who have no family history of the disease. Physicians continue to look for genetic factors that may predispose someone to the disease.

Breast cancer is the second most common type of cancer in women (second to skin cancer).

The National Breast Cancer Coalition, the nation’s largest breast cancer advocacy organization, recently set a deadline for the end of breast cancer: January 1, 2020.

Side-Out Foundation

Dealing With Fear

Breast Cancer Webinar

Official 2012 Dig Pink Tour Stops

Join the following tournaments as they strive to…

Make a Statement. Educate. Raise Funds.

Small Town Team-Big Time Goals

by Sarah Hemminger Carlow University

SOAP Award Winners Featured at AVCA Convention

2011 SOAP Award Winners!!!

Scholarship Awards

Community Service Awards

Side-Out/AVCA National Dig Pink® Awards

New Research on Inflammatory Breast Cancer

Advice from Dig Pink Veterans

Side-Out Partners With Team IP

Breast Cancer Facts

by Sarah Hemminger
Carlow University