I’m quite certain that a lot of you have been seeing the words “Pink” and “Volleyball” together floating around the school, and while at first, you might be a little bit confused about what it means, the Dig Pink Volleyball game has an importance to not only for the athletes playing in the game, but for breast cancer awareness. As someone with a parent who works with cancer patients, I personally know and understand that cancer is no joke; it can change a person’s life. Once it goes unrecognized in the first stage, it gets worse and harder to treat. Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. Since there is not a definite cure for cancer at the moment, there are luckily plenty of ways to treat cancer including the well-known chemotherapy, radiation therapy, surgery, and targeted therapy, but there are lots of other ways to treat cancer. Although the situation seems simple enough at the first glance, a lot of families could be unable to treat their loved ones as treatments in America are expensive, and not only that, survival rates are low, especially if it’s a stage 4: the most sever stage of cancer and when the cancer is at its worst. Cancer can also come back, which is a potential issue for families and individuals to handle. As you can see, there is a lot that goes on when a person has cancer, which is why it is imperative for awareness of cancer as not a lot of people comprehend the depth of the suffering of a cancer patient and their families. These reasons, and more, are exactly why our school is hosting their own Dig Pink Volleyball game next Thursday from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. It’ll be a lot of fun to see our Varsity athletes play and it’s for a great cause.

Dig Pink is a volleyball event hosted at schools to create awareness of breast cancer and fund research and treatments through the Side-Out Foundation. It was founded by Rick Dunetz after his mother was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer in 2006 to challenge today’s cancer care. Their mission is to make a difference for those living with the most advanced stage of breast cancer, and they even have their own scientists and research team so they could manage and operate the research that goes into the development of cancer research. According to the Side-Out Foundation’s website, their process has helped athletes, parents, and coaches across the US host over 9,000 Dig Pink events. Dig Pink can be hosted by anyone “from middle school volleyball teams to NCAA to adult leagues”. Dunetz was actually a high school varsity volleyball coach at the time, so for him, he used volleyball games and events to fund for breast cancer research. According to the Side-Out Foundation, they have raised $15 million for Side-Out’s metastatic breast cancer clinical trials.

Dig Pink is not just an event, but a helpful source that helps raise money for breast cancer research by selling Dig Pink accessories, swag, organized bake sales, or conduct raffles at the event. There’s a lot that goes into the event so check out the website here . You can also donate as well! Side-Out also has an ambassador program for those of you looking for more volunteer hours and get leadership experience. The website for the ambassador program is here. Our Dig Pink game is on October 21, 2021 and is played by the Varsity athletes from 6:00 to 8:00 P.M. Check out the game and wear pink to show your support, since it would mean a lot to so many people and remember to have a wonderful day, Knights!