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Healthy Connections, Inc. Awarded Komen Grant

Mena, ARK. (April 4, 2008) - The Susan G. Komen for the Cure Arkansas Affiliate made history last year when for the first time it awarded grants totaling $1 million. That trend continued today as Komen for the Cure handed out checks to 28 Arkansas organizations totaling more than $1.2 million.

Healthy Connections, Inc. in Mena, AR was awarded a grant of $10,463.00 for its program. This project will continue the efforts to provide mammograms to uninsured or underinsured women in our community.)

"We are thrilled that our grant program continues to grow after 14 years," said Arkansas Affiliate Executive Director Sherrye McBryde. "This year we awarded $1,205,221 to 28 very worthwhile breast cancer projects around the state."

The Komen Arkansas Affiliate first awarded grants totaling $78,700 in 1994.

"The support that Arkansans provide to Komen for the Cure through the Race for the Cure and other events continues to grow with each year," McBryde said. "It is because of that support that we are able to offer grants to worthy organizations dedicated to the fight against breast cancer."

The affiliate also awarded its highest honor, the Hickingbotham Award for Service, to Vickey Metrailer, long-time Komen volunteer.

"Vickey has worked in the operations area of the Race for the Cure for a number of years and was race chair in 2001," McBryde said. "And she has been instrumental in the evolution of our grants process."

The Hickingbotham Award is named in honor of businessman Frank Hickingbotham and his family who were founding sponsors of the Arkansas Race for the Cure.

During the meeting at the Junior League of Little Rock Building, the Komen Arkansas Affiliate also inducted Julie Bridgforth and Dr. Robert Fincher into its Pink Ribbon Society.

Bridgforth has served as race director for many years and as Arkansas Affiliate board president. She has been largely responsible for the awareness and screening programs in Pine Bluff and the Delta areas of the state, according to McBryde.

Dr. Fincher pioneered every breast imaging procedure in Arkansas, including needle localization and stereotactic and ultrasound-guided core biopsies. He is currently serving as the lead interpreting physician and the audit interpreting physician for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences/Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute.

The Pink Ribbon Society is an honorary membership based on community leadership in the area of breast health and breast health awareness and given to recognize significant contributions to the state to advance the mission of the Komen organization.

Komen for the Cure was established as the Komen Foundation in 1982 by Nancy Brinker to honor the memory of her sister, Susan G. Komen, who died from breast cancer at the age of 36. Thanks to more than 75,000 volunteers dedicated to the fight against breast cancer, Komen for the Cure, with its Affiliate Network, is the world's largest private funder of community-based breast health education and breast cancer screening and treatment programs. Together with its Affiliate Network, corporate partners and donors, Komen for the Cure has raised nearly $600 million for the fight against breast cancer.

return to the top of the page :: April 4, 2008

CASA Volunteers Needed

Healthy Connections’ CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) Program is in need of additional volunteers.

If you are interested in helping children who have been removed from their homes and placed in foster care due to allegations of abuse or neglect, contact Cindi Hernandez, CASA Program Manager at 479-243-0279.

return to the top of the page :: April 4, 2008

Healthy Connections Opens New Community Clinic in Mt. Ida

Healthy Connections has opened a new community clinic in Mt. Ida - Montgomery County Community Clinic (MCCC). The clinic provides primary and preventative medical care.

Please visit the new clinic page for more details about the services offered, or contact us for more information.

return to the top of the page :: January, 2008