Oct. 14, 2010
By Kelsey Detweiler, GoPSUsports.com writer
The Penn State Lady Lions put away their blue and white uniforms and trade in for a different color once a year, every year for the past four years. The color of their uniforms go from traditional navy and white to a bit brighter color: pink. This year will be no different.
Lady Lion Basketball is gearing up for the Fifth Annual WBCA Pink Zone at Penn State at the Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday, February 27. It is a day full of basketball, activities and a whole lot of pink. Pink Zone is a day dedicated to raising awareness about and celebrating the lives of breast cancer survivors. It is a day of commemoration, a day of observance and a day of hope.
In the four previous Pink Zone at Penn State games, more than $160,000 has been donated to various breast cancer organizations. The Lady Lions have even higher expectations set for this year's game day.
Mimi Barash Coopersmith, a financial supporter of Pink Zone Day from its infancy and currently an honorary co-chair of the Pink Zone committee, is just one of the many enthusiasts dedicated to making the day the best it can be. As a breast cancer survivor, Barash Coppersmith embodies everything that Pink Zone is about. She supports the Lady Lions and their efforts in raising awareness and funds for breast cancer.
"It's an occasion that in my mind has three missions from the outset," said Barash Coopersmith. "One is to bring together all who are suffering from or who have survived breast cancer with family and friends to see that they're not alone in their battle. That there are lots of people facing the same challenge and struggle and everybody can kind of give added strength to one another as an inspiration."
"The second is to get people to experience Lady Lion basketball at its best both playing on the court and working for a great cause," said Barash Coopersmith. "And the third is to raise money in support of various projects related to diagnosis, treatment, cure and surviving breast cancer. Put them all together and they spell what used to be Think Pink day, now Pink Zone."
Pink Zone is more than just a basketball game that raises awareness and invites breast cancer survivors to come together. The day raises money to support five beneficiaries. Lady Lion head coach Coquese Washington is one person who is notably proud of the connections and partnerships her team and her coach staff have made with these organizations.
"We've partnered with Mount Nittany Medical Center, Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition, Penn State Hershey Medical Center, Kay Yow Fund, which is an organization that is supported by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association, and J.C. Blair Memorial Hospital," said Washington. "Through what we do with Pink Zone and the different organizations we're partnered with, the funding that we raise is going to help on a local, on a regional and on a national level."
Aside from raising awareness about breast cancer and funds to donate to worthy causes, the Pink Zone at Penn State is just plain fun. The crowd, the celebration of survivors and the color pink make the Bryce Jordan Center light up like never before.
"We look at it as it's a huge party for survivors and their families," said Washington. "We pretty much turn the arena over to them and celebrating them."
Junior guard Renee Womack described Pink Zone as an exciting and unpredictable day unlike any other. "It's an electric atmosphere," said Womack. "It's one of those games where, like any game day, you want to win and you want to be competitive, but everybody in the arena knows that this day is about more than just a basketball game."
Senior guard and forward Julie Trogele agreed that the day is something the team looks forward to, and works hard to make a true success. "I am always hoping we can pull out the win for the breast cancer survivors and those that are still going through it and just make sure that we have a great crowd coming and be supportive of the survivors and their families," said Trogele. "It's important to raise awareness and make sure that everybody understands that we need to support each other."
It is a day full of pride, promise and hope. It is a day for those who struggle and those who are survivors. It is a day that helps us to remember and to appreciate, to acknowledge and to celebrate.