Increasing Funding for and Awareness of Breast Cancer Research
Vital action is needed to ensure the CBCRP's present funding sources and increase funds from new sources. CBCRP funding from the State cigarette tax decreases every year. Moreover, current funds are not sufficient to do all that needs to be done. During 2009, the CBCRP turned down grant applications requesting a total of $8,707,564 that were rated by expert reviewers as having sufficient scientific merit for funding.
To increase its revenue, the CBCRP began its Community Partners Program in 2002. The Community Partners Program pursues two goals:
- Increasing donations to the CBCRP through the California income tax voluntary contribution program and new sources;
- Increasing public awareness of breast cancer, breast cancer research, and the California Breast Cancer Research Program.
Community Partners: Increasing Voluntary Donations to the CBCRP
The Community Partners Program has led to growth and diversification in donations to the CBCRP. During 2009, the CBCRP received major funding from the California state income tax checkoff program and from private foundations. In addition, the public took a number of other opportunities to donate to the CBCRP.
California State Income Tax Checkoff Program. More than 42,300 individuals donated over $565,000 to the CBCRP during 2009 through the state income tax checkoff program. This made the CBCRP one of the checkoff program’s top beneficiary organizations for the year.
The following grants were funded in part through voluntary tax contributions in 2009:
- Risk Factors and Breast Cancer Survival in Black/White Women Yani Lu, M.D., Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope
- Health Literacy in Older Patient's Breast Cancer Treatment Arash Nasim, M.D., Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles
- P32: New Functional Target in Breast Cancer Brain Metastasis Karin Staflin, Ph.D., Scripps Research Institute
Foundations. Two foundations are signaling their approval of the CBCRP’s pioneering efforts by joining with the Program to support our leading-edge research.
- The Avon Foundation for Women is contributing $500,000 to support the CBCRP’s groundbreaking Special Research Initiatives. The funds help support a study examining long-term environmental exposures and breast cancer in a large, diverse population group and a study investigating why women from some minority groups, once they are diagnosed with breast cancer, are less likely than others to be successfully treated.
- The California Community Foundation is contributing $31,000 to support a CBCRP-funded study that explores emerging concerns about whether grapefruit increases breast cancer risk for post-menopausal women.
United Way. The CBCRP is a participant organization in the Community Campaign of the United Way of California, which allows residents of the state to make donations at their place of work. During 2009, the CBCRP received donations from the United Way of the Bay Area, United Way of the Capitol Region, United Way Silicon Valley, United Way Southeastern Philadelphia, and the United Way State Employees Charitable Campaign.
Individual, Business, and Community Group Efforts. This year, the public demonstrated continued enthusiasm for the CBCRP’s research.
- On Catalina Island, the Las Caballeras women's horseback organization turned their annual 5-day ride into "Cowgirls for the Cure." The women dressed in pink and outfitted their horses with pink harnesses and ribbons. When the dust cleared after the September 30-October 4 ride, Las Caballeras had raised $10,000, which they donated to the CBCRP.
- The organizers of the San Francisco Marathon again selected the CBCRP as a beneficiary of their Cause to Run program. On July 26, 2009, 25 runners raised $22,780 to support the CBCRP's efforts to eradicate breast cancer. The top fundraiser was Sudha Venkataraman, at $3,341. Four staff members from Gitane Restaurant formed a running team and together raised $2,314. Team CBCRP volunteers also registered racers, handed out supplies, and helped with other behind-the-scenes details.
- Businesses and community groups that made donations to the CBCRP included the Avon Foundation for Women, Spectrum Clubs Inc., and the Crescent City Lighthouse Quilt Guild.
- Businesses donated over $14,000 to the CBCRP during 2009, and individuals (in addition to those who donated through the California State Tax Checkoff program) contributed over $52,000.
Business and Employee Giving Campaigns. Businesses that made the CBCRP the beneficiary of their community or employee fundraising efforts included: California State Employees Contribution Program, AT&T Employee Giving Program, Amgen Corporation Matching Gift Program, and Wells Fargo Community Support Campaign. In addition, the CBCRP received contributions from the Kaiser Permanente Community Giving Campaign.
Web-based Giving. The public has also responded to the opportunity to make donations via the Program’s Web site, www.CABreastCancer.org.
Community Partners: Increasing Awareness of Breast Cancer Research and of the CBCRP’s Work
During 2009, the CBCRP’s outreach campaign focused on raising awareness of breast cancer research results and the Program’s work. The campaign also concentrated on increasing citizen contributions via their state income tax forms.
The CBCRP conducted a combined outreach effort in 2009, named Checkoff California, with other California nonprofit organizations who receive state tax return contributions. Together, the CBCRP and these nonprofit organizations created a radio and Internet marketing campaign to alert the public to the income tax checkoff program. The campaign was conducted in partnership with the tax preparation firm Jackson Hewitt and over 140 California radio stations, member stations of the Northern California Broadcasters Association, Southern California Broadcasters Association, and San Diego Radio Broadcasters Association. Campaign activities included more than 3,000 radio public service announcements in English and Spanish, a presence on Facebook and Twitter, and a Web site highlighting all nonprofit organizations included in the income tax checkoff program.
The CBCRP’s special Web site dedicated to the income tax checkoff, www.endbreastcancer.org, informed stakeholders about fundraising progress. It also summarized progress researchers achieved with the grants funded via contributions made on state income tax returns.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger further boosted California's awareness of the opportunity to make donations through the tax checkoff by issuing an official proclamation declaring March 2009 as Checkoff California Month.
Faith Fancher Research Award
Faith Fancher was a long-time television news anchor and personality with KTVU (Oakland) who waged a very public battle against breast cancer. She also was the founding member of the CBCRP Executive Team, which formed in 2001 to help raise the visibility and fundraising profile of the Program. Faith passed away in October 2003 after a six-year struggle with breast cancer. In Faith's honor, the CBCRP has created the annual Faith Fancher Research Award. The award is presented each year to a researcher or research team embarking on a CBCRP-funded breast cancer study that reflects the values that Faith held most closely and extends the work that Faith did for all women facing breast cancer. The recipients of the 2009 Faith Fancher Research Award are Anna Nápoles-Springer (University of California, San Francisco) and Carmen Ortiz (Círculo de Vida) for their community collaborative project, Nuevo Amanecer: Promoting the Psychosocial Health of Latinas.
