Good sports throughout Tanner and west Georgia are happily enduring buckets of ice-cold water to support the fight against breast cancer.
The “Cold Water Challenge” rules are simple: someone who has just completed the challenge nominates a friend via a Facebook video post to also complete the challenge. Within 48 hours, they are challenged to:
- If the challenge isn’t completed within 48 hours (or bypassed entirely), those challenged are asked to donate $100 to Tanner Medical Foundation’s Mammogram Assistance Fund.Upload a video to Facebook showing them challenging three friends and getting doused with cold water.
“We started this as a friendly little competition between friends and neighboring businesses in the name of raising funds for an important cause,” said Donna Maner, from The Nest in Carrollton. She and co-owner Carla Maner Duncan initiated their Cold Water Challenge after hearing about similar fundraising challenges that had taken place among firefighters and first responders.
“We hoped that this would be a fun reminder that charitable donations are not limited to the Christmas season, but can and should happen throughout the year,” said Duncan. “It’s wonderful when our community comes together to help those who need it.”
The funds donated will help provide mammograms for area women who could not otherwise afford them. This screening is considered the first line of defense in the detection and treatment of breast cancer, yet many women go without an annual mammogram because they fear they can't afford it.
Annual mammograms can detect cancer early, when it is most treatable. In fact, it is possible for a mammogram to show changes in the breast up to two years before a change can be felt. Mammograms can also limit the need for extensive treatment for advanced cancers and improve chances of breast conservation.
“The donations we’ve received so far will fund 13 mammograms,” said Venita Steed, RN, program director for Tanner Breast Health in Carrollton. “Since each woman has a 1 in 8 chance of being diagnosed with breast cancer at some point, it’s very possible that the Cold Water Challenge could save a life.”
More than 25 “Cold Water Challenge” videos have been posted on Tanner Medical Foundation’s Facebook page, featuring buckets, water balloons, pools and lakes. A few of the most creative videos have come from Tanner Health System employees.
“We like a challenge,” said LaQuinta Grizzard, Tanner Medical Center/Carrolton’s director of Cardiovascular Services. “When it’s for a worthwhile purpose, our team will always rise to the challenge.” Grizzard and members of Tanner Medical Center/Carrollton’s catheterization laboratory department slid across a water slide in their “Cold Water Challenge” video.
The videos continue to be posted and viewed at www.facebook.com/tannermedicalfoundation. Donations to Tanner Medical Foundation’s Mammogram Assistance Fund are gratefully accepted at www.TannerMedicalFoundation.org or by calling 770.812.GIFT (4438.)