While over 10,000 people are expected to come out for Sunday’s Run for the Cure, local celebrities are also showing support for a cause they said have touched them personally.
While renowned designer Richard Robinson unveiled a pink dress he designed for an auction to raise money for the Canadian Breast Cancer Network on Wednesday, Ottawa Senators defenceman Chris Phillips and wife Erin designed a bear for An Evening with Abigail, a fundraiser for the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation.
“We’re all affected by cancer, in one form or another,” said Phillips.
“We have lots of family and friends (who have been affected),” agreed Erin Phillips. “So when we were asked (by An Evening with Abigail founders Rochelle and David Greenberg) to take part, we were honoured.”
The Phillips’ bear, which wears a jersey and cap signed by Phillips, also comes with miniature hockey sticks signed by Phillips, Mike Fisher, Jason Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson, as well as game tickets.
“He got all the guys to sign different things,” Erin Phillips said.
Robinson, who has supported other charities, including the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Habitat for Humanity and the United Way, wanted to raise money for breast cancer after his mother-in-law lost her battle with the disease last year. The dress is the featured item for the CBCN’s fourth annual online auction starting Oct. 1.
Making a dress for the cause is meaningful, since many of the younger women who suffer from breast cancer worry about how the disease will affect their intimate lives, said CBCN executive director Jackie Manthorne.
The Greenbergs launched An Evening with Abigail in honour of a close friend who lost her battle with breast cancer in 1996.
“I’ve gone through breast cancer, so I know how difficult it is for a lot of women,” said Rochelle Greenberg. “It is a terrible disease. So many people are affected that we have to do what we can to raise awareness for the disease and money for research.”
