Thursday, August 6, 2015

JUNE 25, 2015 BY CRAIG PYNN

Step 2: Creativity: There are all kinds of things happening in the prostate cancer community that are far more creative than just turning things blue.
Fun is an essential quality of creativity. Pints for Prostates, whose motto is “reaching men through the universal language of beer,” is a perfect boomer vehicle. It’s founded on the idea of having fun in a social setting rather than listening to medical lectures about men’s genitourinary issues. Even while it’s not discussed directly over beer, there’s no question that the core message gets through.
Up in Canada just before Father’s Day, it’s “wear plaid for dad” when lots well-dressed men and women suddenly appear in public and all over Facebook wearing plaid shirts, skirts, ties, and even some plaid kilts. Again, it’s creative visibility without having to talk directly about about cancer–or even wearing blue.
Then there are very sweet and creative inspirations like Linda Hoetger’s “Petey the Prostate Crusader,” a walnut-based figure (to remind us that a prostate is about the size of a walnut), who appears up above and in different guises all over the Internet, and wherever Linda happens to be. Linda and Petey are a visible testament that prostate cancer—more than any other—is a couple’s disease. Linda is an inspiring example of how one person can take something small, but highly creative, and build so much momentum that last year she persuaded the Ohio state legislature to formally proclaim September as prostate cancer awareness month—something it had never done before. In 2015, her goal is to get every mayor of every town in Ohio to proclaim September as prostate cancer awareness month—and with 156 proclamations so far, she’s well on her way.http://navigatingpca.com/2015/06/25/increasing-awareness-without-having-to-talk-about-it-part-i/

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