Hello, my name is Vickie Paradise Green, and I am the chairperson and Founder of Run for the Cure Foundation.
We are a 17-year NPO based in Tokyo.
Our mission is to eradicate breast cancer in Japan as a life-threatening disease for both Japanese women and men.
So, how do we fulfill our mission of bringing breast cancer awareness to Japan?
One thing we do is we publish a magazine called PiNK.
We produce it quarterly, and have been doing that since 2007.
Thus far, we have produced and distributed 740,000 copies to individuals, hospitals, libraries, and companies.
We also provide breast cancer seminars.
These are important for both men and women to learn about the importance of self-examination and annual mammograms.
We have been doing these seminars since 2013.
We have had more than 6,000 participants at over 200 seminars.
So why did I start this Foundation?
I am a 19-year breast cancer survivor.
I returned to the United States for my surgery and treatment, and when I returned to Japan, I wondered what was available for Japanese women in Japanese language, and found virtually nothing.
Fortunately, I am the owner of a creative digital agency, so I said to my staffs that I wanted to start a Foundation, we need a logo, and we need a website.
That was 17 years ago.
This Foundation, RFTC Japan, has helped many women and some men.
Now I would like to read you a few statistics about breast cancer in Japan that I think may shock you.
Breast cancer is the number one diagnosed cancer in Japan for women between the ages of 25 and 55.
1 in 9 Japanese women will be affected in their lifetime.
Over 91,000 women have been affected annually; 250 women daily.
Almost 15,000 people died in 2019 from breast cancer.
RFTC Japan is able to keep its doors open because of our fundraisers, Pink Ball, Casino Night, Run for the Cure/ Walk for Life, all of which would not be possible without the incredible help of our volunteers and our supporters.
I would like to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for everything that you have done for this Foundation over the last 17 years.
We have all struggled in this year of COVID19, as I am sure each of you have.
Charitable donations are few and far between during this time, and we are finding it difficult to continue our work because we haven’t had a fundraiser in nearly a year.
We will of course do everything we can to make sure that RFTC Japan continues, and that we continue in our mission to help Japanese women and men survive a survivable disease if caught early enough.
I am asking today if you can please help us.
The smallest donation is not too small.
Anything will help us to keep our doors open as we continue to pursue our mission.
Breast cancer does not discriminate.
It affects anyone at any age at anytime at any gender.
With your help, we can stop the dying.
I would like to take a moment to thank you now for listening to this video.
I hope you found it informative about breast cancer and the work of RFTC Japan.
In this year of COVID and beyond, we would appreciate your ongoing support.
Thank you very much.