EVERY member of the Reach for Recovery team is a breast cancer survivor herself, and even more amazing is that they are the only voluntary support structure for thousands of underprivileged women who have lost their breast(s) through this dreadful disease.
The organisation’s Shirley Gottschick is passionate about the Ditto Prostheses Project, which provides breast prostheses to those who cannot afford them.
“It is a life-changing gift of hope for a mastectomy patient as she can face life again looking ‘normal’ and feeling confident!”
She encouraged the public to purchase 250g pink punnets of whole or sliced white button mushrooms at Pick n Pay during October.
“This is the power behind our annual Power of Pink campaign. The funds raised give financial power to Reach for Recovery’s Ditto Prostheses Project to purchase silicone breast prostheses for women who can’t afford reconstructive surgery after the trauma of breast cancer.”
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“Breast cancer can happen to anyone, young and old,” affirms Reach for Recovery volunteer Rita Mphokwane.
“So it’s best to get to know how to do your breast self-examination from a young age.”
She encourages everyone to buy fresh mushrooms in the pink punnets.
“The women we help really appreciate the gift! And it’s also good to know that mushrooms have anti-cancer health benefits for the ones buying and eating them.”
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“Breast cancer also brings harsh realities into your life,” concluded Stephné Jacobs, national chairperson of Reach for Recovery.
“The South African Mushroom Farmers’ Association’s annual Power of Pink fundraising campaign in conjunction with Pick n Pay is a wonderful way in which Reach for Recovery can make a very real difference to the future of uninsured women who had survived breast cancer. Everyone who buys pink punnets of mushrooms in October brings that ‘ray of hope’ to survivors.”
For more info on Reach for Recovery’s Ditto project visit: www.reach4recovery.org.za/the-ditto-project
Caxton Local Media Covid-19 reporting