WBCA Pink Zone™ Initiative Raises Over $1.3 Million
 
ATLANTA - The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) announced extraordinary results from its 2009 WBCA Pink Zone™ initiative.

To date, the initiative has unified 1,636 teams and organizations through their participation in the 2009 breast cancer awareness initiative, held February 13-22.

Donations raised thus far surpass $1,362,000 and more than 912,000 fans were reached across the nation.  Over 56 schools broke attendance records through participation in the WBCA Pink Zone. 

“Our coaches and the women’s basketball nation continue to amaze us by their support and participation in this cause,” said WBCA CEO Beth Bass.  “Their dedication to making a difference spans beyond the perimeters of the gym and shows that there are more important things in our sport than the win-loss column.  We have a chance to truly impact our nation by using our voices to raise breast cancer awareness and dollars for research.”

The WBCA’s charity of choice is the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund™, in partnership with The V Foundation.  All participants in the WBCA Pink Zone are encouraged to send donations to the Fund. This year, 1,251 of the participants donated at least a portion of their proceeds to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund, raising over $732,000. 

“With Coach Yow’s passing in January, I really think that it hit home for our coaches to rally around a cause that was so dear to her,” said Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund President Marsha Sharp.  “Her vision was to unite two of her passions, coaching and cancer research, to leave a lasting legacy in our sport.  My hope is that we will continue to gain momentum in raising money for cancer research as a nation of coaches.”

“The V Foundation is proud to be partnered with the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund and to be involved with the WBCA Pink Zone initiative,” said Nick Valvano, Chief Executive Officer of The V Foundation for Cancer Research.  “In just two years, it is phenomenal to see the growth of the Fund and the energy behind the women’s basketball community in raising awareness and research.”
Several WBCA partners and sponsors were involved in the WBCA Pink Zone initiative.  These sponsors and providers included:  Russell Athletic (Official Apparel Provider), Nike (Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund Founding Partner), Petrocelli Marketing, Displayability, Jostens, Wilson and girls got game.  They each donated a portion of any proceeds to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund. 
The NCAA joined the cause by implementing the “Calling for a Cure” campaign where all NCAA women’s basketball officials blew a pink whistle February 13-22 and were encouraged to make a donation to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund. ESPN also joined the initiative by dedicating their annual “February Frenzy” women’s college basketball games on ESPN2 and ESPN360.com to supporting the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund, in partnership with The V Foundation.
Along with the NCAA and ESPN, other supporting organizations included:  CBS College Sports Network, Fox Sports, National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators (NACMA), National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators (NACWAA), Collegiate Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), NCAA Conference offices, The Hartford (Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund Founding Partner) and many more. 
The 2010 WBCA Pink Zone dates will be February 12 – 22. 

WBCA Pink Zone History
The WBCA began the WBCA Pink Zone™, formerly known as "Think Pink", in 2007 as an initiative to raise breast cancer awareness in women's basketball, on campuses and in communities. Kay Yow, former North Carolina State University head women's basketball coach, served as the catalyst for the initiative after her third reoccurrence of breast cancer in 2006. In 2007, more than 120 schools unified for this effort and helped make the inaugural year a success. In 2008, over 1,200 teams and organizations participated, reaching over 830,000 fans and raising over $930,000 for breast cancer awareness and research. The WBCA's charity of choice is the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund(tm), in partnership with The V Foundation. The WBCA strongly encourages all donations from Pink Zone games to be given to this Fund. For more information about the WBCA Pink Zone, visit www.wbca.org/pinkzone.asp. 

About the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund
The Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund is a 501 c(3) charitable organization committed to being a part of finding an answer in the fight against women’s cancers through raising money for scientific research, assisting the underserved and unifying people for a common cause. For more information about the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund, visit www.wbca.org/kayyowwbcacancerfund.asp. 

About The V Foundation
The V Foundation is a charitable organization dedicated to saving lives by helping to find a cure for cancer. The Foundation seeks to make a difference by generating broad-based support for cancer research and by creating an urgent awareness among all Americans of the importance of the war against cancer. The V Foundation performs these dual roles through advocacy, education, fundraising and philanthropy.  For more information about The V  Foundation, visit www.jimmyv.org. 

About the WBCA
Founded in 1981, the WBCA promotes women’s basketball by unifying coaches at all levels to develop a reputable identity for the sport and to foster and promote the development of the game as a sport for women and girls.  For additional information about the WBCA, please visit WBCA.org.

--WBCA--