Pinky Swear Program

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Girl Scouts and their moms practice their breast self-exam techniques on silicone breast models at a Pinky Swear Program in Garden City.

A promise goes a long way…but staying healthy calls for a Pinky Swear! The Maurer Foundation’s Pinky Swear Program is a new initiative that brings mothers and daughters together with a pledge to take care of their breast health and support one another in doing so. The Pinky Swear is a three-part pledge.

Beginning with an educational component, Maurer Foundation presenters lead a breast health workshop, explaining breast cancer myths, facts, risk reduction practices, and the importance of good nutrition. Silicon breast models are made available to help moms and daughters alike learn proper breast self-exam techniques, which help detect breast cancer early, when it is most treatable.

Following this informative session, mothers and daughters take the Pinky Swear Pledge to help prevent breast cancer in their families by exercising, eating right and practicing other healthy lifestyle choices including refraining from smoking and drinking alcohol. Mothers pledge to stay up-to-date with their monthly breast self-exams, yearly mammograms, and other screenings. Daughters agree to support their moms, to be mindful of their families’ histories of breast cancer and to follow the proactive measures suggested to reduce the risk of breast cancer.

As the final element of the Pinky Swear Program event, participating moms are asked to spread the word and encourage three other women they know to sign up for the Maurer Foundation’s Alarm Clock service. This free appointment reminder for mammograms and breast self-exams helps women stay up-to-date with their screenings despite busy schedules and distractions.

“It is important to remember that our audience is not limited to adult women—girls and teens need to be taught about breast health as well,” explains Maurer Foundation Executive Director Debbie Hecht. “We are thrilled to introduce the Pinky Swear Program as a way to reach both girls and women with life-saving information while building a loving mother-daughter support system.”

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