Submitted

Tickets are now on sale for the Day of Caring, a breast cancer awareness and education event sponsored by the Cancer Council of Ellis County.

The theme for the the 21st annual event is “The Art of Survivorship.” It will begin at 9 a.m. Oct. 8 at Fort Hays State University’s Memorial Union. Vendors and information booths will be available for guests to peruse until seating for brunch begins at 9:50 a.m., with the program beginning at 10 a.m.

“The arts celebrate life, and the Day of Caring is a celebration of the lives we have come to appreciate as cancer survivors,” said event chairperson Juno Ogle, an 11-year survivor. “And with Hays being such a vibrant arts community, it seemed like a natural match.”

Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, Lawrence, former poet laureate of Kansas, will speak on “Surviving with Gumption and Grace.”

“I’m very excited to have Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg as our speaker,” Ogle said. “Her work fits in well with the idea I had behind the theme that the arts help us through troubling times.”

Mirriam-Goldberg, a breast cancer survivor herself, leads writing workshops for cancer survivors and others with serious illnesses at Turning Point: The Center for Hope and Healing in Kansas City, and offers Brave Voice writing and singing retreats and workshops with singer Kelly Hunt. She is the author of 19 books, including the memoir “The Sky Begins At Your Feet: Cancer, Community and Coming Home to the Body.”

Her speech is sponsored by HaysMed Breast Care Center and Dreiling/Schmidt Cancer Institute.

The program also includes brunch and a fashion show featuring 20 area breast cancer survivors modeling clothing provided by area boutiques.

Tickets are $20 and are available at the following locations:
• FHSU Student Center in the Memorial Union
• Cancer Council of Ellis County, 701 Riley
• Refine boutique, 115 W. 10th
• Walgreen’s, 2600 Vine
• Breast Care Center and Dreiling/Schmidt Cancer Institute at HaysMed
• Arthur’s Pizza in Ellis.

For more information, contact Ogle at [email protected] or Paula Flesher, executive director of the Cancer Council of Ellis County, at (785) 625-6653. The chair-elect for this year’s event is Donna O’Brien.