Meet this week’s campus celebrity, Emily Ferver! Emily is a Sophomore Environmental Studies major from Maryland. Recently, Emily has been working exceptionally hard on organizing campus events for Breast Cancer Awareness month, which is coming up in October.
Can you explain the event you’re organizing a little bit?
For my work study job at the Center for Women and Gender we have to come up with some activity that we can do to increase awareness on campus. Last year I became aware that we didn’t have a Breast Cancer awareness program during October, which is Breast Cancer Awareness month. So I originally wanted to do some kind of activity to increase awareness on campus, but it’s grown from there, and now I’ve been working on organizing a few fundraising projects to go with it.
What are some of those fundraising projects?
We have several things that were donated from local and non-local businesses. For example, we have a baseball that’s signed by Derek Jeter, we have a sweatshirt designed by New Duds, and my personal favorite is that we’re going to be selling luminaries that can be dedicated to anyone, and then we’re going to have a vigil where they’ll all be lit up. It’s a chance to dedicate prayers and show support. Everything we raise from the fundraisers is going to the Vermont Cancer Center that’s based out of UVM.
What made you choose Breast Cancer as your cause to raise awareness for?
My mother is a 3 time survivor of Breast Cancer; the third time was my senior year of high school. She went through intensive chemo and radiation therapy and ended up getting a double mastectomy and hysterectomy, so it was a lot of recovery and a lot of awareness of what people go through when they go through these intense cancer treatments. And the reason my mom has survived all three of these cancers is because of early detection, and part of detecting it early is knowing about it. And girls, while we’re still young and low risk, should be aware of what’s normal and how to catch it early so we all can survive like my mom did.
What sort of events are you planning on having?
Because it’s the first time doing this program we’re going to have a panel discussion with three different speakers: a researcher/doctor, a man who survived breast cancer, and a woman who has dedicated her life to empowering the caretakers of cancer patients. Then we’re going to be tabling with the fundraisers and raffles, and information from other foundations.
Are you hoping to do this every October while you’re at Saint Mike’s?
Yes, I definitely want it to grow from here. I had more planned for this year but it takes more time than a month to put it together. So after this years’ is over I want to work on putting together something like a run that can continue every year: something that can go on while I’m still here and after I’ve graduated.
What do you hope to accomplish by putting all of these events together for Breast Cancer Awareness month?
I want to make girls- and guys- our age aware of the risk of Breast Cancer. I want to make it less of a taboo subject, because as much as it’s talked about in the media it’s still a taboo. And I want to raise money for the Vermont Cancer Center which is out of Fletcher Allen, because I want to work with the local community, especially the girls and guys on Saint Michael’s campus.
Be sure to keep an eye out for all of the awesome events Emily is helping organize on campus starting October 14th!