Article & Photos by: Kelly Urban, The Tribune-Democrat
Reprinted with permission. Click here for the original article.
A check for $165,000 that was presented Thursday to Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center will continue to support patient care services.
Funds were raised at the Taunia Oechslin Girls Night Out event that was held April 29 at the Frank J. Pasquerilla Conference Center in downtown Johnstown. Nine hundred women were in attendance.
“We are very excited and thrilled to give that to the Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center, and that brings our total to $1.86 million over 17 years,” said Meghan Stahl-Skinner, board president of the Taunia Oechslin Girls Night Out Foundation. “We’re blessed that the community continues to support us in such a big way.”
Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center’s partnership with Taunia Oechslin Girls Night Out provides financial assistance to patients for mammograms, breast biopsies and surgeries, genetic testing for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndromes and education about the importance of breast cancer screenings.
Funds also support equipment and technology needed to screen, detect and diagnose breast cancer, ensuring access to the most up-to-date technology for community members.
Erin Goins, director of the Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center, said it’s overwhelming that Taunia Oechslin Girls Night Out has been able to achieve $1.86 million in fundraising for the Windber breast care center.
“The night is just a moment of looking around that room and seeing how many women have had breast cancer or have been affected by breast cancer, and pretty much everyone in that room raised their hand or stood up, so that’s why we do what we do, to take care of patients,” she said. “They have been dedicated since day one and they continue to be dedicated, so it’s great for everyone.”
Richard Sukenik, chief executive officer of Chan Soon-Shiong Medical Center at Windber, said the event is a benefit to the community.
“Yes, everyone is excited about the dollars, and it’s unbelievable how much money has been raised over the years, but ultimately it’s about the patients, and we’re helping them in their greatest hour of need,” he said.
“This event has been going on for a long time, and the hard work and dedication that goes into it is amazing.”
Girls Night Out began as a small “pay it forward” project by Oechslin, who was diagnosed with breast cancer when she was 36 years old and succumbed to the disease at the age of 39.
It was her goal that every woman be educated about breast cancer, understand the value of early detection and receive proper treatment.
“Our goal now is $2 million in total for the Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center, and we will achieve that prior to 20 years, which we’re really excited about,” Stahl-Skinner said. “More than anything, we want the women who attend and follow this event to know that services are available at the Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center. They should have their annual mammogram, do self-breast exams monthly and get genetic testing if they have a history of breast cancer in their family. We want to help fund that and educate, and we will continue with that mission.”