Steelheads Pink in the Rink Raises Record $27,641 for St. Luke's and Breast Cancer

The Idaho Steelheads and St. Luke?s Mountain States Tumor Institute (MSTI) teamed up to host a fundraising event called ?Pink in the Rink? on March 19, 21 and 22 and raised $27,641 to help women in need of financial assistance get the help they need. The auction is the most ever raised from a Steelheads jersey auction. Steelheads players wore one-of-a-kind pink jerseys for the three-game series against the Stockton Thunder and then auctioned the jerseys off. As well, raffle tickets were sold for a team-autographed jersey and Pink in the Rink ball caps and t-shirts were sold with proceeds going to MSTI.Silent auction tables were set up on the concourse during the three games and fans bid on their favorite player?s jersey in increments of $100 and/or bought it outright for $2,000. The jerseys are presented to the winning bidder by the player immediately following Saturday?s game. All of the dollars raised from the jersey auction go directly to St. Luke?s. Lance Galbraith?s, Colin Sinclair?s and Blake Forsyth?s jerseys were sold outright for $2,000. The front side of the jerseys depict a large pink breast cancer awareness ribbon that extends to the left arm and around the back and a smaller pink ribbon is on the right arm. The Steelheads primary logo is on the front center in shades of pink, black and silver with the secondary logo on each shoulder. The St. Luke?s crest is on the left chest.$160,650 0 has been raised over the past several years with similar jersey auctions, benefiting various causes at the hospital. In March of 2006, the Steelheads held the first Pink in the Rink event and raised a record (at that time) $21,791 for breast cancer care and treatment through St. Luke?s (MSTI).Breast cancer is the most common cancer among Idaho women. Last year in Idaho, it was the second leading cause of death among women ages 35-54 and accounts for more than twice as many deaths as any other type of cancer. Overall, annual screening mammograms could prevent 15-30% of all deaths from breast cancer among Idaho women as early detection significantly increases the survival rates. In the first two months of this year, the need for financial assistance in St. Luke?s Breast Care Services for mammograms was up 23%.*References:http://www.idcancer.org/annual%20reports/Cancer%20in%20Idaho%202006%20Preliminary.pdf http://www.idcancer.org/special/Breast/BRST972001.pdf http://statecancerprofiles.cancer.gov/cgi-bin/risk/risk.pl?06&2&1&1&1 http://statecancerprofiles.cancer.gov/cgi-bin/risk/risk.pl?07&2&1&1&1 - www.idahosteelheads.com -