Cancer Survivors Tell Moving Tales

Oct. 19, 2007 - PRLog -- On the day her mammogram revealed her tumor, Linda Peters came home to some bittersweet news. A message from eBay revealed she had won a coveted hand-made quilt from the Quilt Pink project―a collaborative charity auction supporting the largest breast cancer awareness effort in the world. Since Quilt Pink was launched a year ago by American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine and the Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Foundation, an astonishing 4,000 hand-made quilts have been submitted for auction on eBay. Hundreds of thousands of dollars have gone to Komen for the Cure®, and for every quilt made and donated to the cause, there is a woman with a stirring story.

In Cottage Grove Wisconsin, Tania Russow runs to her mailbox to retrieve the Quilt Pink quilt she’d worked on while undergoing chemotherapy. A stranger outbid her for it on eBay, but sent it back to Tania when she heard of its heart-rending origin.  In Nashua New Hampshire, two teenagers die in a car crash and as their classmates mourn the loss, they complete the Quilt Pink project they started and submit it to eBay. In Steamboat Springs Colorado, a family is startled by the accidental discovery that someone they’ve never met has dedicated her Quilt Pink quilt to their mother, who unfortunately lost her battle with breast cancer. And in Kissimmee Florida, a healthy grandmother makes it her goal to buy as many Quilt Pink quilts as she can so that her daughter will live to become a grandmother.  

Launched in September of 2006 on Quilt Pink Day, 1000 quilt shops across the country invited patrons to create and donate hand-made quilts to find a cure for breast cancer. The quilts are submitted to eBay and go up for auction with all proceeds sent to Komen for the Cure®. Neither the magazine nor the foundation anticipated that the number of donations would exceed what was expected - by nearly five times! Nor were they prepared for the touching events set in motion by the powerful connection Quilt Pink has forged among women of all ages, all walks of life, quilters and non-quilters alike – for a common cause.    

“For the past 25 years, Komen for the Cure® has been on a mission to end breast cancer forever,” said Katrina McGhee, Vice-President of Marketing for Susan G. Komen for the Cure®. “Programs such as Quilt Pink are an integral part of that mission, helping us to reach millions with life-saving breast health messages, and raising funds that support research and community outreach.             
Every major advance in breast cancer research has been touched by a Komen for the Cure® grant, resulting in significant scientific breakthroughs and major cancer-fighting discoveries. Right now, celebrity quilts are on auction on ebay.com. To view and bid on these remarkable, one-of-a-kind quilts visit www.eBay.com/quiltpink

“The minute it sinks in that you’ve decided to give up a breast to save your life,” says Linda Peters, “well, that’s a very hard minute.” Today, Peters is cancer-free and has purchased 12 more Quilt Pink quilts for women recovering from breast cancer. “Sometimes,” said Peters, “things happen in your life – not necessarily for the lessons they hold for you – but so you can support someone else.”

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Since Quilt Pink was launched a year ago by American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine and the Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Foundation, an astonishing 4,000 hand-made quilts have been submitted for auction on eBay.

Website: www.eBay.com/quiltpink