The 2nd official tour stop at Colorado Crossroads was an amazing site. 81 fund raising teams and about 2/3 of the teams wore pink. The kids, coaches, and parents were awesome and we thank them for their efforts. To day the tour has produced over $92,000 inching little by little to our goal of $400,000.
For those who missed the opening ceremonies, we had our survivors and those loved ones that support survivors to stand on the Pink court and be recognized. The speech theme was: Listening. Here is the 2 minute speech:
One of the greatest gifts that we can give a breast cancer survivor is for us to do something as simple as listening. Right now we have a tremendous opportunity to spread awareness…a teachable moment for these players. Coaches, if you know a breast cancer survivor that is here at this event (including yourself), allow them to tell their story to your players. It is the best form of awareness that I can think of…better than any brochure or flyer we can distribute. It will be difficult subject matter, but it will be a positive experience for both the players and the survivors. And I promise you, LISTENING is one of the strongest medicines available and I would know, because it bought my mother four and a half years of life and I am counting on many more years.
We truly appreciate the efforts of all the teams and clubs that participated in the Dig Pink Tour campaign and we thank Kay Rogness and the awesome staff here at Colorado Crossroads for all their help in making this a reality. If we can keep growing the Dig Pink MOVEMENT and reach out to every player and coach in the United States, then maybe, our sport, the sport of Volleyball, the sport that we love, can have a significant impact in the fight against breast cancer.
So before I close this speech out, I have a simple question to ask all of you…HEY, CROSSROADS…CAN YOU DIG IT?…..RIGHT ON!
The response to the message was very good. We heard many stories about survivors telling their stories. We were thrilled. In fact our own Nila Straka had the opportunity to speak to a team of 12 year olds and told us it was a wonderful experience.
Next stop is Colorado Crossroads week 2….see you there.
Rick
