Belleville School District’s pink-out event raises money, awareness

Photo Courtesy of Belleville School District
Students, parents and staff members turned the classrooms, hallways and offices in Belleville into a sea of pink during the district’s pink-out event.

BELLEVILLE, NJ — Belleville students, parents and faculty members hung pink ribbons in classrooms, affixed words of hope and inspiration to bulletin boards, and donned pink shirts, hoodies and sweaters. They turned every hallway, classroom and office in Belleville into a sea of pink. In many ways, Belleville School District’s sixth annual pink-out on Oct. 22 was the biggest one yet.

In all, $6,271.47 was raised for the American Cancer Society.

Belleville holds its pink-out each October during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Belleville’s pink-out is a way to teach a new generation about a disease that affects one in eight women in the United States. Though it is much more prevalent among women, men can also be diagnosed with breast cancer.

And although breast cancer claims tens of thousands of lives in the United States each year, the annual pink-out organized by chief engagement and partnership officer Diana Kelleher draws its sense of hopefulness from the promise that a cure is not far away and from the strength displayed by those who have triumphed over the disease.

“It is amazing to see how our students, their parents and the district’s staff support this event and champion this cause,” Belleville Superintendent of Schools Richard D. Tomko said. “I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who was involved, wore pink and made a donation. We can only hope a cure is right around the corner.”