About 1 in 8 women in the U.S. will develop invasive breast cancer, the second leading cause of cancer-related death in women. A key component of improving survival outcomes is education about the importance of early detection. A few years ago, a collection of police agencies in Southern California came up with a simple campaign to join the fight against this devastating disease: the Pink Patch Project.
Visiting @LACLEARINGHOUSE at their #PinkPatchProject fundraiser in Monterey Park. Proudly showing off my @IrwindalePolice t-shirt & patch! pic.twitter.com/TG7YoVdaqX
— Sgt. Rudy Gatto (@RGatto_IPD) October 26, 2016
Going pink
The Pink Patch Project is a loosely organized program with origins in Orange County. In 2013, officers with the Seal Beach Police Department came up with the idea of wearing custom pink patches on their uniforms during the month of October (Breast Cancer Awareness Month) as a way of engaging community members and raising awareness about the importance of early breast cancer detection and treatment.
In 2014, a conversation between Chief Anthony Miranda of the nearby Irwindale Police Department and a records clerk sparked his PD’s participation in the project, which they now informally lead.
“During that conversation, they realized three of our employees had lost family members to breast cancer the preceding year,” Irwindale Police Sgt. Rudy Gatto said. “In a department of 30 cops, that was a pretty big number.”
The Irwindale PD took Seal Beach’s idea one step further – selling the pink patches to members of their community and partnering with City of Hope, a world-renowned cancer research center in Irwindale’s backyard. In the PD’s first year participating in the program, they raised $20,000 for the clinic.
The department used their social media accounts to spread the word, and the project blew up from there. As of this year, over 80 agencies across the country have partnered in the campaign and have raised tens of thousands of dollars for breast cancer research and awareness. Gatto compares the structure of the public awareness program to that of National Night Out — every agency is encouraged to determine the level of participation that makes the most sense for their community and their budget. These separate programs are run independently by the participating PDs under the “Pink Patch” name.
“The two main goals of the project are to raise awareness about the importance of early detection and early treatment, and to raise funds for cancer research, education, and treatment. Whatever the agency is doing to work toward those goals – that’s really what Pink Patch is,” Gatto said.
Real men (and women) wear pink. #BreastCancerAwareness #PinkPatchProject @DanaFarber pic.twitter.com/WUEhx5ftIk
— Hingham Police (@HinghamPolice) October 23, 2016
How agencies represent the campaign and raise funds for their organization of choice is limited only by their imagination. Many departments raise money by selling items at community events (patches, stuffed animals, license plate frames, t-shirts, car decals, or challenge coins – you name it), partnering with local restaurants, or raffling items donated by their local communities. Some agencies, like the Irwindale PD, equip their officers with brochures that include information about the project along with educational material about breast cancer to hand out to community members who inquire about the patches. Whether an agency decides to partner with a local or national cancer research or support organization is up to them.
Breaking down barriers
Even if an agency forgoes fundraising and simply represents the project by donning pink, the impact can be substantial. On the first day of last year’s program, a group of baristas noticed Gatto’s patch as he was purchasing his morning coffee and began a conversation with him. Gatto shared with the group of women that early detection saved his mother-in-law from the disease. The employees were so impressed with the campaign that they ultimately partnered with the agency for a Pink Patch event.
“The whole purpose of this project is to break down those barriers and open up the lines of communication,” Gatto said. “I was telling my wife that story later that night, and she pointed out that in any other environment it would have been weird for a male police officer to have a conversation while on patrol with some young females about breast cancer. But because of that patch, it opened up those lines of communication and I was able to have this dialogue with them.
Check out the impressive pink ribbon display from our partners at @GlendalePD. Raising public awareness on all levels! #PinkPatchProject pic.twitter.com/OTM48i9YO8
— Pink Patch Project (@PinkPatchPrjct) October 23, 2016
I didn’t raise any money on that, but if one of those girls thinks about the importance of early detection, then that conversation was a win. And that’s just one police officer on one stop. If you multiply that by hundreds of police officers wearing these patches on thousands of stops throughout the country, with thousands of conversations just like that, you can see the impact that this has without raising one single penny.”
Getting involved
Because the Pink Patch Project is independently managed, getting started is as simple as determining how big or small your agency would like to go. Contact the Pink Patch Project to let them know your agency would like to partner with them and they can guide you through the process and offer suggestions. If you’re looking for inspiration for how you’d like to approach your version of the program, the Pink Patch Project’s Facebook page has countless examples of how other agencies have participated. The Irwindale PD’s official Pink Patch website also features more information to help you get started.
“Everyone’s life has been touched in one way or another by cancer. So it’s something that everyone can relate to,” Gatto said. “Because of our interaction with the community and because we’re out there walking around in the public in a variety of contexts, the reach that law enforcement has makes us a natural vehicle to get this message out there.”
As agencies nationwide aim to ease tensions with the citizens they serve, the Pink Patch Project is a simple program that can help you engage with your community for a very important cause.
