A toast to the fight against breast cancer

In a yearly tradition, Dalhousie MBA students will make a toast to the fight against breast cancer this Thursday, Sept. 29.

This year’s ‘A Toast to the Coast’ will be the seventh annual fundraiser organized by the MBA graduating class in order to support the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

“I think it is a cause that nearly everybody can sympathize with,” says committee member Corey Blenkhorn, noting that breast cancer is the most common cancer afflicting Canadian women. “It touches so many lives.”

A laugh for a good cause

The event begins at 7 p.m. and will take place at the Atlantica hotel. For $50 guests will enjoy a cocktail reception, a comedy performance by Judy Croon, and silent and live auctions.

Ms. Croon’s comedy specials have appeared on multiple television channels and she is an avid supporter of breast cancer research, creating and hosting other annual fundraising events. This is the first year that a comedian has been featured instead of a keynote speaker and Mr. Blenkhorn hopes it will make for a “lighter event,” because “raising money for a good cause is a happy occasion.”
 
Through the sale of corporate sponsorship packages, event tickets, and auction items, as well as generous donations from local supporters, Dal MBA students will donate 100 percent of the profits to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

Making a difference outside of the classroom

The ‘Toast to the Coast’ fundraiser began when MBA students and alumni were doing a project for Robert Blunden's class.

“One of the students had a mother battling breast cancer, so [The Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation] was a natural choice.” explains Colin Craig, marketing and communications manager for the Faculty of Management.

Each class places its own stamp on the event; for this year, the committee has decided on an hors d’oeuvres reception that will allow students and alumni to interact more. Mr. Blenkhorn says that planning ‘A Toast to the Coast’ has been a good exercise for his graduating class because it has been an “eye-opener” into the amount of hard work that is required to organize a fundraiser. The event has “challenged [the MBA students’] abilities to budget time and plan accordingly,” he adds.

This is the 25th anniversary of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. The organization strives to fund research, spread awareness, improve diagnostic and treatment techniques, and offer “a positive quality of life for those living with breast cancer.” The foundation depends completely on volunteers like the Dalhousie MBA graduating class.

For more information, including ticket information, visit the Faculty of Management blog.