Avon marches for breast cancer awareness

Tears formed up in Wallace's eyes as she recalled her.

"We went through the same thing at almost the same time," Wallace, a survivor of breast cancer herself, said, as about 200 of her colleagues at Avon marched toward the palliative care residence decked out in pink scarves and holding pink balloons on the final leg of their 5-kilometre trip from Avon Canada's headquarters on the Trans-Canada Highway.

To Wallace, who first found out she had breast cancer five years ago, watching friends and colleagues march to raise awareness was an intense experience. "It's very touching," she said. "It's very emotional for me," she said, adding there is simply no way breast cancer cannot be cured, considering the will and courage that people show toward achieving that goal.

At Avon, great importance is placed every year on a week dedicated to cure breast cancer. "Avon is the largest donator of the corporate class on a world-wide basis," said Avon Canada president Chris Stevens, out walking among his employees.

"It's a show of support for all of the people whose lives have been affected by breast cancer in this community," said spokesperson Roberta Lacey, also out marching with the rest of the employees.

This year, Avon Canada has set up a special initiative, "Call for the Cure." For every telephone call that is made to 1-900-561-PINK by anybody who is a Bell Mobility customer in Canada, a $2 fee will be added to their phone bill as a donation to the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade.

The total will then be donated to the Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance.

Lacey explained that Claire Morais was close to a lot of the employees out walking that day. "She was very loved by all the associates," Lacey said, and had been around for over 10 years.

For Wallace, that connection was clearly personal. "She was the first one that dared to speak to me," she recalled, after the office found out Wallace had cancer herself. However, that's not to say Avon Canada was not supportive of her as well. On the contrary, the company helped her work out a way for her to be able to keep working while undergoing her chemo-therapy treatment. "That was important to me, personally," she said.

The march ended at the West Island Palliative Care Residence, where a $10,000 cheque was donated by Avon Canada.

The phone line for Call for the Cure should be open until the end of the year and beyond, according to Avon.