Behind the Badge
Officers in Fredericksburg, Va. are going all out to show their support for breast cancer awareness. The Fredericksburg Police Department is going “Code Pink” for October, National Breast Cancer Awareness month.
The Fredericksburg PD hopes their efforts will inspire women around the country to have regular screenings for early detection of breast cancer. According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, more than 252,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States every year.
“One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime,” said Police Chief David Nye in an interview with ABC8 News. “That’s alarming. As a husband and father to three daughters, I can’t stress enough how important it is to educate and encourage early detection of breast cancer.”
The department is raising awareness in a variety of ways.
The city’s Watershed manager, Officer Joe Young, purchased a custom blaze-pink camouflage uniform. Young wants people to take his picture while he is on patrol and post on the department’s Facebook and Twitter. He has pledged to donate $1 to the Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation for each photo submitted.
The Fredericksburg PD also converted a patrol vehicle into a “Breast Cancer Awareness Vehicle.” It will operate as a regular patrol vehicle and appear at local events, like the Mary Washington Healthcare’s Power of Pink Breast Cancer Walk. Mary Washington Healthcare donated the funds for the vehicle conversion.
Thirty-seven officers will wear pink badges, and seven communications officers will wear pink polo T-shirts this month. Ten percent of the proceeds from each badge purchased this year will be equally distributed to the Firefighter Cancer Support Network, Pink Heals and the Gloria Gemma Breast Cancer Resource Foundation.
The community can participate in the department’s efforts by: wearing pink during October, encouraging women to get regularly checked for breast cancer, or supporting a 501c3 organization that supports breast cancer awareness and education.
