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The colorful quilt took hours of stitching to make, but the effort was a labor of love for Gina Doty.
Doty, chapter vice president for professionals at SUNY Plattsburgh, sewed the cloth quilt with the help of Plattsburgh UUPer Michelle Toth in honor of Doty’s sister, Daria Crenshaw, who died of breast cancer 11 years ago, at age 36.
“It’s an honor to my sister,” said Doty, after a lunchtime presentation by the American Cancer Society (ACS) at the Fall Delegate Assembly in Albany. “I have not met anyone who hasn’t been touched by cancer.” Doty said it’s important to raise money to help find a cure.
The quilt was on display at the DA during the hour-long informational talk, which focused on ACS’s “Making Strides Against Breast Cancer” walks. Doty is one of dozens of UUPers who teamed up with NYSUT on Making Strides, ACS’s main event to raise awareness and dollars to combat breast cancer.
Last year, more than 10,000 NYSUT walkers raised more than $1 million through Making Strides walks in New York. NYSUT is the largest union-sponsor of Making Strides walks in America.
This year, walks were held across the state in October, including one at SUNY’s Institute of Tech-nology in Utica. Doty said her quilt was raffled off at a walk that involved UUPers from SUNY campuses in Platts-burgh, Canton and Potsdam.
“A lot of UUPers are out there for Strides,” said UUP Secretary Eileen Landy. “It’s a wonderful program.”
At the DA, about 60 union members, most of them women, learned about the Making Strides program and other ACS initiatives. Sherry Tomasky, ACS regional advocacy director, spent about 40 minutes sharing valuable information about breast cancer, including the importance of getting mammograms and raising awareness about the disease.
Some interesting facts:
• ACS awarded $22 million in research grants to SUNY faculty members over the last 25 years.
• This year, ACS awarded $4 million in research grants, most of the money going to SUNY Albany’s School of Public Health.
• ACS strongly supports Michelle’s Law, a bill that, if passed, would allow cancer-stricken college students to take 12 months of medical leave, keeping their insurance coverage during that period. The bill passed the House in July; the Senate has not voted on the bill.
— Michael Lisi