Victoria Shapiro
[email protected]
(202) 414-0774
Chicago, IL (April 10, 2013) –Deerfield, Ill. Mayor Harriet Rosenthal and mayors and representatives from numerous Chicago northern suburbs are showcasing their communities’ support in the fight against lung cancer at a Joint Proclamation Ceremony, proclaiming April 28 Breathe Deep North Shore Day,Monday, April 15 at 6:30 pm at Deerfield Village Hall. LUNGevity Foundation representatives President Andrea Stern Ferris, Board Member Susan Bersh, lung cancer patient and advocate Jill Feldman and local LUNGevity volunteers will attend. During the village meeting that follows, Mayor Rosenthal will issue Deerfield’s proclamation. Deerfield High School students Samantha Gottstein and Graham Ambrose will also be honored for their leadership in raising over $136,000 for LUNGevity Foundation, the nation’s largest lung cancer-focused nonprofit. These events reflect the North Shore community’s ongoing efforts to raise awareness and research funds for the fight against lung cancer.
“One in 14 people will be diagnosed with lung cancer in their lifetime, and I’m one of them,” said Deerfield resident Jill Feldman, mom of four with two teenagers at Deerfield High School. “No one deserves lung cancer, and anyone can get it. Research funds are desperately needed to find more effective early detection methods and treatments for this disease. It is inspiring to see our community taking on a cause that has devastated so many here and across the nation.”
Deerfield High School students took on the cause of funding lung cancer research for their 2012 annual School Chest fundraising effort in support of many classmates and teachers who have loved ones impacted by the disease. The students raised the funds through three weeks of multiple daily student-led fundraisers. The Deerfield High School Student Council, including School Chest Co-Chairs Samantha Gottstein and Graham Ambrose, will be honored again for their role spearheading the efforts at a special student council meeting and plaque presentation Tuesday, April 16 at 7:30 am at Deerfield High School.Dr. Christopher Maher of Washington University in St. Louis, whose lung cancer research receives funding from the students’ donation, will attend with LUNGevity representatives.
“Deerfield and the North Shore communities are role models in the fight against lung cancer,” said LUNGevity Foundation President Andrea Stern Ferris. “If more communities embraced the fight against lung cancer with the passion, commitment and caring of the North Shore, we as a nation could change the face of lung cancer survivorship.”
In the past year alone, North Shore area grassroots events, combined with Deerfield High School’s School Chest project, have raised over $280,000 for LUNGevity’s lung cancer research funding.The next event,Breathe Deep North Shore, a 5k fun run and one-mile walk in Deerfield, is April 28 and expected to host approximately 1,500 supporters and raise well over $100,000.
“The heart of LUNGevity beats strong in Deerfield and the rest of North Shore,” said LUNGevity Board Member Susan Bersh, who is organizing Breathe Deep North Shore with Volunteer Event Co-Coordinator Cindy Schwartz. “I, like so many in our community, have lost people I love to this terrible disease. It’s wonderful to see our mayors coming together and showing their commitment to making lung cancer a priority and our community uniting to support so many of LUNGevity’s efforts. Our community’s unwavering support and the dedicated students at Deerfield High School give us all hope for the future in the fight against lung cancer.”
What:
North Shore Mayor’s Joint Proclamation Ceremony, Deerfield Village Proclamation & Deerfield High School Student Plaque Presentation
When:
April 15, 2013
6:30 pm – Joint Proclamation Ceremony
7:30 pm – Deerfield proclamation and Deerfield High School Student Plaque presentation
Spokespeople:
LUNGevity Foundation President Andrea Stern Ferris; Board Member Susan Bersh; lung cancer survivor Jill Feldman; and Deerfield Mayor Harriet Rosenthal
Where:
Deerfield Village Hall, 860 Waukegan Rd., Deerfield, Ill. 60015
Media Notes:
- The Deerfield High School Student Council will be presented with a plaque of gratitude on April 16, 2013 at 7:30 am at Deerfield High School. Media are invited to attend both the April 15 and April 16 events, as well as Breathe Deep North Shore on April 28 at 9:30 am at Deerfield High School. Advanced notice of attendance of the April 16 event at Deerfield High School is recommended. Please notify Susan Bersh, 847-338-5635 or email, [email protected] by 4/15.
- View Deerfield students’ lung cancer School Chest video here
- More information on Breathe Deep North Shore is available at www.lungevity.org/northshore.
- On-site media contact for all events is Susan Bersh, 847-338-5635
About LUNGevity Foundation
The mission of LUNGevity Foundation is to have a meaningful impact on improving lung cancer survival rates, ensure a higher quality of life for lung cancer patients and provide a community for those impacted by lung cancer. It does so by supporting critical research into the early detection and successful treatment of lung cancer, as well as by providing information, resources and a support community to patients and caregivers.
LUNGevity seeks to inspire the nation to commit to ending lung cancer.
For more information about the grants or LUNGevity Foundation, please visit www.lungevity.org.
About Lung Cancer
- 1 in 14 Americans is diagnosed with lung cancer in their lifetime
- Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death, regardless of gender or ethnicity
- Lung cancer kills almost twice as many women as breast cancer and more than three times as many men as prostate cancer
- About 55% of all new lung cancer diagnoses are among people who have never smoked or are former smokers
- Only 16% of all people diagnosed with lung cancer will survive 5 years or more, BUT if it’s caught before it spreads, the chance for 5-year survival improves dramatically.