Local 174 Executive Vice President Mary Stuart-Fairburn, who is also the Western Vice President of the Women’s Caucus, was as usual involved in the planning of the event again this year.

On behalf of everyone involved in the 2008 effort, Mary said that the Women’s Caucus would like to thank everyone who participated in this very worthy cause this time around. The Teamsters have had a team of runners at this event each of the past four years, doing their best to  help be part of the solution to breast cancer.

Mary added, since the 2008 Race the tallying has been mostly done, and the Women’s Caucus had raised over $5,700 — bringing the Caucus’s total donations in the four years it has been involved to over $20,000.

Another person well known to Local 174 who has helped out all four years in the Komen Races is JC-28 Office Manager Diana McDowell. Diana and Mary were Co-Captains of the JC-28 multi-Local team for 2008. Several 174 members were on the 2008 Team, some of whom appear in the photos in this Gallery submission.

Diana on behalf of the Caucus said that its Board members and activist helpers like her, especially thank the Locals, Joint Council No. 28, and individual participating Local members, without whose combined support the Caucus would not have been able to achieve its pre-Race pledge promise goals. She assured all concerned that the money raised goes to good use. The Susan G. Komen Foundation uses 75% of the net proceeds to fund education and early detection programs while 25% will be invested by National Komen on groundbreaking breast cancer research.

Diana pointed out that according to the Komen Foundation, an estimated 12.5% of U.S. women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime.

The Mission Statement of the Foundation is: "Susan G. Komen for the Cure was founded on a promise made between two sisters — Susan G. Komen and Nancy Brinker. Suzy was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1978, when it was rarely discussed in public and little was known about the disease. Bofore she died at the age of 36, Suzy asked her sister to do everything possible to bang an end to breast cancer. Nancy kept her promise by establishing the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation in 1982 in Suzy's memory.

"Twenty years later, the Komen Foundation is a global leader in the fight against breast cancer through its support of innovative research and community-based outreach programs. Working through a network of U.S. and International Affiliates and events like the Komen Race for the Cure, the Komen Foundation is fighting to eradicate breast cancer as a lifethreatening disease by funding research grants, supporting education, screening and treatment projects in communities around the world.

Today, we celebrate the power of a promise and how a single person's vision can make a difference in the lives of millions."