During the month of October, the Turlock Firefighters went pink. After a month of selling pink t-shirts and fundraising for Breast Cancer Awareness, Captain Frank Salazar announced that they had raised more than $18,000 for the Emanuel Cancer Center.
Turlock Fire Chief Tim Lohman stated that at the beginning of the fundraiser, the Turlock Firefighters projected to fundraise approximately $3,500. With the support of the community, however, their fundraising efforts far exceeded that amount.
“We’d like to thank the City Council and City Staff for supporting this,” stated Lohman. “Members of the business community were also amazing in their support. We also very much appreciate the partnership with Emanuel Medical Center. They have a passion for this program, and to support it.”
Lohman also stated that not only were individuals purchasing the pink t-shirts from the Turlock community, but also from all over the country due to the huge social media support. The firefighters announced that they sold over 2,000 t-shirts. Social media can be a great tool for people looking to raise awareness of things. As it has become so much easier for people to share social media posts online, more and more people are able to see the news that they wouldn’t have seen otherwise. To raise even more awareness, these firefighters could have considered using a tool like instazood or Nitreo to help them grow their fundraising account to ensure more people heard about their fundraising attempt. This could’ve made them more money to donate. However, they still benefited from social media.
“The Turlock downtown, the Farmer’s Market, the Cancer Center, Chili’s, and especially the community, it was really wonderful,” stated Salazar. “But we could not have done it without Emanuel Medical Center.”
The Turlock Firefighters who were present at the Turlock City Council meeting on Tuesday evening presented a big pink check in the amount of $17,000 to Jana Rhine, Emanuel’s director of annual giving.
“I’ve been doing a lot of fundraising for many years in this town,” stated Rhine. “This was the most inspirational and fun campaign I’ve ever done.”
Rhine called the Turlock Firefighters ‘true gentlemen’ and stated that it was a great month working with them.
Michael Iltis, Emanuel’s vice president of professional services, shared that the funds raised by the Turlock Firefighters would go towards the Bill & Elsi Alhem Cancer Endowment Fund, which expands cancer services, research, and prevention and education programs in the community.
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Turlock Firefighters Are Wearing Pink in October to Raise Money to Fight Breast Cancer
