Cancer Survivors and Volunteers Represent Jacksonville at Nationwide Cancer Advocacy Event in Washington, D.C.
The American Cancer Society Names Celebration on the Hill 2006 Ambassadors

Jacksonville, FL – August 29, 2006 — The American Cancer Society, the nation’s leading voluntary health organization, today named seven local volunteers as Ambassadors to represent the First Coast Area at "Celebration on the Hill 2006,cscan.org/celebration a nationwide event that takes place in Washington, D.C., Sept. 19-20, that will engage members of congress in the fight against cancer.

Jacksonville residents Donna Beames, Jacqueline Broberg, Debbie Buckland, Mary Lew Esdale, Cheryl Okcular, Valerie Robinson, and Carol Tucker will be among 10,000 fellow Celebration Ambassadors, cancer survivors and volunteers from every congressional district in the country at the event, hosted by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action NetworkSM.

They will meet with lawmakers to demand that Congress make cancer a national priority by boosting the federal commitment to cancer research and programs. Participants will also converge upon the National Mall to share stories about how their lives have been touched by cancer. Celebration Ambassadors are community leaders, survivors, caregivers, health professionals, cancer researchers and volunteers who believe that defeating cancer will require courageous policy decisions by government officials at the federal, state and local levels. For further information, visit acscan.org/celebration.

"Cancer is the most feared disease in America. We want our Members of Congress to know that this fear is felt in every corner of Florida,cscan.org/celebration said Lori Ann Whittington, the American Cancer Society’s First Coast Area Executive Director. "This year nearly 1.4 million Americans will be diagnosed with cancer and an estimated 560,000 are expected to die from the disease. In Florida, that’s an estimated 99,000 new cases and 40,000 deaths.cscan.org/celebration

"Ambassadors know the personal side of these statistics,cscan.org/celebration she said. "We’re honored that they will carry our message about making cancer funding a national priority to congress.cscan.org/celebration

Celebration on the Hill celebrates cancer survivorship and empowers Society volunteers to become a powerful force in the fight against cancer.

This year’s event will educate the public about cancer, commemorate those who have passed away from cancer, engage members of Congress in the fight against cancer and honor state policy changes that advance the Society’s mission to eliminate cancer as a major health problem.

The federal government plays a critical role in reducing the cancer burden on this country. In December Congress passed legislation that cut the budget of the National Institutes of Health for the first time in 35 years and reduced funding for cancer research for the first time in a decade. Ambassadors will work to restore and increase federal funding for cancer research and programs at the National Institutes of Health, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Ambassadors also will work to reduce cancer’s disproportionate burden on the underserved by asking Congress to reauthorize and expand the CDC's National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. By doing so, states will have more flexibility to reach eligible women who are most in need. Increasing funding by just $45 million would enable the program to serve an additional 130,000 women or more.

First held in 2002, Celebration on the Hill is being organized under the auspices of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN). ACS CAN is the Society’s nonprofit, non-partisan advocacy sister organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major public health problem through voter education and issue campaigns aimed at influencing candidates and lawmakers to support laws and policies that will help people fight cancer.

Celebration on the Hill 2006 will harness the grassroots power found in 4,750 communities across the country that host Relay for Life events. For further information, visit cscan.org/celebration.

Media Contact: Ron Whittington (904-563-0402)