PINK Umpire shirts?!?! YGTBSM!!

[UmpJM]

Nope, I am serious as a heart attack!

My association, Fox Valley Blues, will be providing the umpires for the CABA and USSSA World Series (U9, U11, & U15) being held in the NW suburbs of Chicago next week.

Rather than just collecting our game fees and going home, as a group we've decided (with the tournaments' blessings) to see if we can't accomplish a little good by helping raise awareness - and money - to help fight breast cancer.

Along with our wives, daughters and sisters, we will be promoting awareness of breast cancer early detection and engaging in various fundraising activities.

As part of the fun, during certain games at certain venues, the umpire crews will be wearing PINK umpire shirts.

If you'd like to find out more - heck, maybe even kick in a little coin to support your colleagues in this effort - check out: FVB Umpires.

Who knows, sometime next week you might even see a picture of yours truly working a game in a pink shirt.

Thanks for your support!

JM

(Posted with permission of the owners/moderators.)

[jdmara]

What a great cause and gesture by you and your colleagues! The FVB Umpires Association is obviously a tremendously caring organization that cares about people (not the green stuff). Thank you for sharing this with us all. It's very inspirational!

-Josh

[mick]

Good luck with it, JM.

[Rcichon]

[wringing hands, anticipating YouTube Video....]

What a gesture. Hope you guys raise lots of greenbacks.

[tjones1]

Best of luck, JM! By the way, your PM box is full.

[3appleshigh]

I may very well be alone here, But I think this is frankly a Bad Charity to support. Why single out Aform of Cancer? Is Cancer research not good enough? Breast Cancer and the pink Ribbon has become a Plague on society and the biggest money making machine since Starbucks. Slippers for Breast cancer, Shot Glasses for Breast Cancer, I'm surprised I haven't found packs of Smokes that are pink yet. This is a BS charity that is so single minded and all imposing. It is trying to create a monopoly and I think it is Bush.

Sorry, but If you are allowed to post the benifits, expect to here the other side of it. Support Cancer Research, MS, Asthma, Autism what ever, but this focus on one area rather than the entire problem is silly, IMHO.

Thanks and God Bless.

[Rcichon]

Why NOT sngle out one form? The more that is known about any one type helps overall knowledge of Cancer - and it's prevention/treatment and possibly cure.

Cancer in general is a cash cow. When you get to specific types, there is usually greater focus, especially when there is much known. And saving lives is what it's all about.

FWIW

[SanDiegoSteve]

Originally Posted by 3appleshigh

I'm surprised I haven't found packs of Smokes that are pink yet.

Because pink cigarette packs would be for the Lung Cancer charity.

Seriously, there are many forms of cancer and disease which have a ribbon color designation, with charities available for donations:

Blue: Colon cancer.

Light Blue: Prostate cancer.

Orange: Leukemia.

Red: Heart disease, supraventicular tachycardia, Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome (WPW), hypertension and Evans Syndrome.

Yellow: Liver and bladder cancer

Green: Kidney disease and kidney cancer

Purple: Pancreatic cancer and cancer survivor official color

White: Bone cancer and diabetes

Black: Melanoma

Brown: Colorectal cancer

Teal: Ovarian, cervical, uterine (all gynecological) cancers

Lime Green: Lymphoma (non-Hodgkins) and Muscular Distrophy

Lavender: All cancers in general and Hodgkins Lymphoma

Orchid: Testicular cancer

Pearl: Lung cancer or lung disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Mesothelioma and Emphysema

Silver: Parkinson's Disease and strokes

Gold: Childhood cancer

I am fully supportive of the Find a Cure program for breast cancer research and proudly display a pink ribbon on the back of my car. If I were in better shape, I would walk in the Susan G. Kohman 3-day. As it is, I couldn't walk in the 3-hour .

[Carbide Keyman]

Originally Posted by 3appleshigh

I may very well be alone here, but I think this is, frankly, a bad charity to support.

Why is it a "bad" charity to support ? Have there been any allegations of wrongdoing or other bad acts on the part of this foundation ? Is there some nefarious scheme to swindle all those who contribute ?

Is it a "bad" charity, or is it just not your charity of choice ?

[Steve M]

Originally Posted by 3appleshigh

I may very well be alone here, But I think this is frankly a Bad Charity to support. Why single out Aform of Cancer? Is Cancer research not good enough? Breast Cancer and the pink Ribbon has become a Plague on society and the biggest money making machine since Starbucks. Slippers for Breast cancer, Shot Glasses for Breast Cancer, I'm surprised I haven't found packs of Smokes that are pink yet. This is a BS charity that is so single minded and all imposing. It is trying to create a monopoly and I think it is Bush.

Sorry, but If you are allowed to post the benifits, expect to here the other side of it. Support Cancer Research, MS, Asthma, Autism what ever, but this focus on one area rather than the entire problem is silly, IMHO.

Thanks and God Bless.

I don't think any of these research charities are bad to support. Which ones you support depends on which ones have touched you or someone you know. I'll throw some bucks at a number of these. I'll get involved with ALS. A good friend is involved with an MS charity. Another with one of the cancer groups. And I've got several friends involved with heart groups. While all caners have something in common, each one is just a bit different - it's not (or does not seem to be) the same disease just showing up in different body parts.

edited to add - JM - good for you, knoch 'em "alive".

[Rich]

Originally Posted by SanDiegoSteve

Brown: Colorectal cancer

Really? This is a color, umm, well-chosen.

[SanDiegoSteve]

Originally Posted by RichMSN

Really? This is a color, umm, well-chosen.

Don't think that this little irony escaped me for one moment when I first read it!

[Adam]

Originally Posted by 3appleshigh

Sorry, but If you are allowed to post the benifits, expect to here the other side of it. Support Cancer Research, MS, Asthma, Autism what ever, but this focus on one area rather than the entire problem is silly, IMHO.

I realize I'm a bit late to the party, but I disagree. "Cancer" is such a varied, vague term. It also represents a behemoth of sorts; too large and overwhelming to thing there's any hope of a cure.

By breaking it down, you offer those with a direct connection an incentive to get involved. By making it look more manageable, people are more likely to pitch in.

Furthermore, many of the cancers are not just distinguished by anatomical location, but by characteristics which require completely different treatment programs and prevention measures.

Some cancers are as different from each other as they are from diabetes or MS.

[UmpJM]

So, just so you can form an objective opinion about th pink umpire shirts, here are a few pictures for you to peruse..

First up, me holding a "pre-plate conference" consultation with my crew for a "pink shirt" game.



Next up, getting ready to call the pitch (by the way, the batting team was a team composed of players from all over the province of Ontario in Canada).



The other team was from the Chicago White Sox academy, and this photo shows me briefly chatting with Ozzie during a "between innings" change.



Some of my colleagues didn't think a mere pink shirt was enough, so they took it a step further. For example, my partner for the game immediately preceding the pink shirt game can be seen here engaged in his routine pre-game meditation.



Finally, the "tent" we had set up on the main walkway into the complex where our wives and daughters were selling T-Shirts, bracelets, pink glow sticks, etc. to raise additional donations.



If you'd like to kick in a buck, 5 bucks, 10 bucks, a game fee, $5,000, whatever, just go the link below:

FVB - Susan G. Komen Fundraiser

The response we've gotten from the fans, coaches, players, and tournament directors has been OVERWHELMINGLY favorable.

Thanks for your support!

JM

[mick]

Very nice, JM.