Each October, Northwest Federal Credit Union and Northwest Federal Credit Union Foundation host “NWFCU Pink Day” to rally employees and members around Breast Cancer Awareness.
But this year, the effort got personal.
In addition to dressing in pink and raising money for research, the event included a mobile mammogram unit, which set up operations in Northwest Federal’s parking lot. Employees, their family members, board members and nearby tenants were able to have their breast cancer screenings completed onsite throughout the day.
While the number of women getting mammograms has held steady since 2000, many are still not having the recommended screenings, according to the American Cancer Society. Even among women with health insurance, 29 percent do not get mammograms.
Linda Rogus, executive director of the NWFCU Foundation explained that several members of the NWFCU family are breast cancer survivors, so this event hits close to home.
“While it may be an uncomfortable subject for some, mammograms do save lives,” she said. “And by adding the mobile unit to this year’s event, we are making it more convenient for women to take this important step in early breast cancer detection.”
This is the seventh year Northwest Federal and its charitable Foundation have joined forces to promote Breast Cancer Awareness Month, said Chris McDonald, the Credit Union’s President/CEO.
To learn more about the community outreach efforts of Northwest Federal and its Foundation, visit www.nwfcu.org or www.nwfcufoundation.org