Welcome to Wall of Hope Breast Cancer Survivors' Project

Breast cancer project pins hopes on venture

By Christine Louie
Bee Staff Writer
(Published Aug. 21, 2000)

It's a rather tall order to meet.

But it's one that Marilyn Gayler Axelrod, president and founder of the Wall of Hope Breast Cancer Survivor's Project, is happy to fill. With only 10 volunteers, the Davis-based organization is scrambling to hand-make 500 Austrian crystal breast cancer survivor pins for the catalog company Land's End. Their deadline: five weeks.

Land's End, headquartered in Dodgeville, Wis., will sell the pins for $40 each on its Web site, www.landsend.com, beginning in October, company spokesperson Beverly Holmes said.

All of the proceeds from pin sales -- potentially $20,000 -- will go to the nonprofit organization. About $5,000 of this will pay off the cost of materials. The rest will help sustain the Wall of Hope, a traveling photo exhibit featuring photos of California breast cancer survivors.

The effort illustrates the initiative of nonprofits like Wall of Hope to scratch for badly needed funds -- and the commitment of corporate giants like Lands End to support causes they think are worthy and that help boost their image among potential customers.

Wall organizers have been selling the pins as a fund-raising step for five years. But the Land's End order is by far the single largest ever received by the local group.

Holmes said Land's End wanted to help sell the Wall of Hope pin after devoting a portion of its Web site last year to breast cancer awareness links and after sponsoring other breast cancer awareness efforts. Because a majority of Land's End customers are women, Holmes said, the company wanted to revisit the theme in October for Breast Cancer Month.

While Land's End will not net any profits from pin sales, the launch could help improve the image of the company, which is experiencing tougher times along with other catalog companies. In the most recent quarter that ended July 29, Land's End reported a loss of $1.9 million, or 6 cents a share.

For Axelrod, the help from Land's End is most welcome. She said money from the sales will help publicize breast cancer awareness and perhaps provide seed money for exhibits, similar to Wall of Hope, in other states.

She said her ultimate goal is for all participating states to join their photo collections together into a "Mile of Survival" to be featured in Washington, D.C. The California Wall measures 174 feet, carrying the pictures of about 1,300 breast cancer survivors. At its completion, the wall will measure 200 feet, with half representing Northern California and half showcasing survivors in Southern California.

Betsy Mullen, president of the Women's Information Network Against Breast Cancer, said sales of the Wall of Hope pin can greatly increase public awareness of the disease and encourage early detection screening.

It also can build awareness of the pink ribbon, a symbol for breast cancer research since 1993 when it was introduced as part of the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade.

Sales of the Wall of Hope's crystal pin is only one in a series of corporate initiatives to support breast cancer awareness and research. The pink ribbon has been featured in other items like tote bags, Christmas ornaments and candles.

Lillie Shockney, director of the John Hopkins Breast Center in Maryland, said the pink ribbon is "finally becoming a symbol that people are starting to recognize and associate with the disease."

She said Land's End's role in the marketing the pin will only help further the awareness.

"You know that buying the item serves two roles -- raising awareness for those who see it and financially supporting a cause of importance for a breast cancer organization," she said.

St. Louis resident Sarah Gianella purchased the pin through the Wall of Hope Web site for her mother, who is dying of breast cancer. She plans to use a breast cancer theme at her October wedding and has purchased 10 pins for her wedding party to wear. She also sent out wedding invitations displaying the breast cancer postage stamp.

Sacramento resident Marge Ward, diagnosed nine years ago with breast cancer, thinks the pin is a very "unique and elegant way" of promoting the cause.

At a recent "pin party," Axelrod instructed a group of volunteers on the proper way to sew the crystal-studded ribbon together.

"You don't want to push the needle too hard or else you'll pop the crystal out," she said.

By the end of the night, 30 pins lay on the table ready for the second stage of production. The next step: gluing on the pin backs and Wall of Hope phone labels, an effort that will take another group gathering to complete, she said. The final step involves hand packaging the pins into small white boxes displaying Wall of Hope contact information. The entire process for each pin takes about 30 to 45 minutes.

"This is definitely the Olympics of pin-sewing," she said.

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