Pink Ribbon raises record total of $277,000 for Baptist, Mayo Clinic

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The 12th annual Pink Ribbon Golf Classic and its associated events raised a record total of $277,000 this year for breast cancer research and related services at Baptist Medical Center Beaches and Mayo Clinic-Jacksonville. 

The Ponte Vedra Beach-based nonprofit organization announced the total last Thursday, Nov. 8, at Underwood Jewelers. This year’s total eclipsed last year’s record-setting total of $262,000. To date, the organization has raised nearly $1,500,000.

Pink Ribbon 2018 Co-chairs Nancy Morrison and Joanne Ghiloni presented the check to Joseph Mitrick, the hospital president of Baptist Medical Center Beaches and president of Transitional Care for Baptist Health, and Dr. Bobby Maxwell, the division chair for the breast imaging department at Mayo Clinic-Jacksonville. 

The funds will be used at Baptist Beaches to help purchase a PET/CT scanner for the Wilson Cancer Center.

“As you know, that’s an incredibly important part of the breast cancer program,” Mitrick said. “We’re really pleased to have that equipment at Baptist Beaches full-time. That will allow us to serve our patients and keep them here locally at the beach. It’s so important, especially (with) patients that have breast cancer. We want to do everything possible to help them in that journey.”

According to the Pink Ribbon website, PET scans are currently offered at Baptist Beaches only one day per week via a mobile unit. These scans, per Pink Ribbon, are helpful in “evaluating a patient’s response to therapy, specifically, chemotherapy for locally advanced breast carcinoma and metastatic disease, reassessing breast cancer stages and problem solving when conventional imaging results are vague or ambiguous.” Mitrick also thanked Pink Ribbon founder Susie Buckey for starting the organization. 

Pink Ribbon’s fundraising efforts will also continue to support the Jacoby Center for Breast Health at Mayo Clinic. The organization’s support will help fill unmet needs and bring patients innovative and new therapies, support clinical trials and enhance the acupuncture and massage pilot study, among other services. 

“On behalf of Mayo, we are sincerely thankful for all the support we receive,” Maxwell said. “That funding, that money, that support, we take care of patients day in and day out and I can tell you firsthand, they’re absolutely appreciative of it and we’re absolutely appreciative of it.”

Pink Ribbon’s fundraising efforts started with the women’s golf tournament on Oct. 4 at Ponte Vedra Inn & Club, continued with a cocktail party at the residence of former Jacksonville Jaguar Rashean Mathis and his wife Ebony in Marsh Landing Country Club on Oct. 11 and concluded with a David Yurman Trunk Show at Underwood Jewelers in Ponte Vedra Beach Nov. 8-10 that contributed a portion of its proceeds to the nonprofit. Pink Ribbon also sold pink flags as another fundraising mechanism and to raise awareness in the community. 

“The committee worked so hard this year,” said Morrison. “Every one of them (events) has been very well attended. It’s our banner year.”