Walking through campus this time of year, pink is easily spotted on T-shirts, hats and flyers. It is because October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and the Murray State Women’s Center hosted an event Thursday to help raise awareness.

The event, Paint Me Pink, brought people to the Curris Center where they offered manicures to anyone who made a donation to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Whether the person made a donation of $1 or $10, they received manicures for a good cause.

This was the first year of Paint Me Pink. The Women’s Center hopes to expand and make it an annual event. Prior to the event, Abigail French, director of the Women’s Center, was unsure how the event would turn out.

“Since it is the first year we have done this, we don’t know quite what to expect yet,” French said. “But we definitely plan to make this a yearly event and hope for it to continue to grow.”

There were approximately 65 people who stopped by to donate and have their nails done in the four hour length of the event.

Another purpose behind the event, was to educate the public on breast cancer. The event had a variety of booths set up for those who attended. People were also able to have their questions answered by healthcare professionals who shared their knowledge on mammograms and treatment options.

“The most important thing for students is to have the awareness of the symptoms and when they should be checked up on,” French said. “We really want to push all the early detection stuff. We really want people to keep it in mind because they are getting to that age where they need to be checked up on.”

The nail salons Personal Touch and Reflections both donated their time and efforts to the event and expected nothing in return.

“We’ve all had family members affected by breast cancer,” Deanna Darnell, manicurist at Personal Touch Salon said. “We just really thought this would be a great way to give back and I think all of us who came can agree to that.”

French said what surprised her the most about the event was the outpouring of men that got their nails painted pink, the number almost higher than the number of women.

Although they didn’t reach their original goal of $500, the Women’s Center still raised more than $200 for the Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation.

“It’s a great opportunity for students to make a small donation to someone else,” French said. “I think in college we are always trying to encourage giving back and making a difference. So this event has those two things in one program: raising awareness and raising money.”

Story by Breanna Sill, Staff Writer