Meet to make a positive impact this October
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. From Oct. 1 through 31 each year, the international health campaign organized by major breast cancer charities aims to increase awareness of breast cancer and raise funds for research into its cause, prevention and treatment.
This year, a number of hotels around the United States host events and initiatives to raise money for charities that work to increase awareness of breast cancer and to fund research and patient care.
Florida Kimpton Properties
Kimpton EPIC Hotel, in downtown Miami, is holding initiatives to raise money for the Florida Breast Cancer Foundation. Their “Cabana for a Cure” program offers guests the opportunity to book a private, pink-themed poolside cabana for up to seven people. $250 from each booking will benefit the Florida Breast Cancer Foundation. In the cabana, guests can enjoy food and drink services with a menu of pink-themed bites and mocktails, a set of chilled rose eye gels and gift certificates for a Privai Signature Wellness Experience available to redeem at the Privai Spa, opening this fall.
The hotel’s Area 31 restaurant will serve the “Pretty in Pink” mocktail, concocted of Lyres Italian Orange, cucumber, mango, house-made dragon fruit syrup and club soda. The Florida Breast Cancer Foundation will receive 100% of the proceeds made from the $16 mocktail.
They are also offering a Pink your Perks” meeting and event initiative. New 2023 group bookings of 50 or more rooms per night, for two nights or more, contribute $1 per room, per night to the fight against breast cancer.
Similarly, Kimpton Vero Beach is holding their Pink Room Project. Guests can stay in an all-pink suite with pink amenities and enjoy complimentary rosé and chocolate-covered strawberries. It is available for bookings throughout the month of October. 20% of the sales will be donated to the Florida Breast Cancer Foundation.
Marriott Bonvoy
Through their #PINKtober campaign, More Cravings by Marriott Bonvoy partners with breast cancer advocacy organization, Brest Friends. During the month of October, over 100 outlets on the More Cravings by Marriott Bonvoy app will raise money for the Al Jalila Foundation.
These venues will hold pink-themed brunches, ladies’ nights, afternoon teas, raffles and wellness events. Guests who book a table through the app can enjoy a full lineup of additional exclusive culinary events and know that a portion of their bill will be donated.
Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley
Each Friday and Saturday in October, Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley in Palo Alto, California, will host a Think Pink Afternoon Tea. While sipping quality teas and enjoying a new collection of pink treats made by the onsite pastry team, guests can know that a portion of the proceeds will be donated to HERS Breast Cancer Foundation. The menu includes Raspberry Lychee Rose Macarons, Strawberry Cheesecake, and Raspberry Hazelnut Financiers. If you’re a fan of more savory delicacies, look to their Mini Lobster Roll, Chioggia Beets Crostini and Smoked Salmon.
Read more: Tips for Giving Back Like a Supplier of the Year
History of Breast Cancer Awareness
Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM) began as a week-long campaign by the American Cancer Society partnered with the pharmaceutical division of Imperial Chemical Industries. The influential pink ribbon came into play in 1992.
Betty Ford, President Gerald Ford’s first lady, was a major player in kicking off BCAM in 1985. She received a breast cancer diagnosis in 1974, just six weeks after she became First Lady. Her diagnosis and resulting activism played a major role in spreading awareness about breast cancer and the need for more comprehensive treatment options.
It was not until the 20th century that breast cancer demanded serious attention from the world at large. In the mid-nineteenth century, it was almost always treated with a radical mastectomy, an operation devised by American surgeon William Halsted. A patient would go under anaesthesia and their tumor would be tested. If malignant, surgeons would remove her breast or breasts in the same operation. A patient wouldn’t know she had undergone a mastectomy until she woke up.
Radical mastectomies were still the standard treatment by 1974, when an American journalist named Rose Kushner was diagnosed with breast cancer. She refused to accept the major operation, and instead urged her doctors to perform a diagnostic biopsy before operating. Later, she became a major advocate for the lumpectomy, an operation in which only the malignant lump would be removed. She became the leading lay expert on breast cancer. Kushner’s advocacy led to changes in laws, medical practices and patient care that are commonplace today.
Read More: Empowered Women Take Center Stage
This October, look to these hotels and many others that are putting forth initiatives to raise money for a number of breast cancer charities and foundations. Put your money to good use—and a good cause—when you partake in these delightful offerings.
