UAE's Pink Caravan makes brisk progress on Day 2

Sharjah displayed a strong community spirit as residents, citizens, young professionals and students, united to lend their ‘pink spirit’ to the 10th edition of the Pink Caravan Ride, as the pan-UAE breast awareness delivered a second day of campaigning on Thursday.

The second day of the ride flagged off at the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), with 11 young equines leading the pink brigade, and among them were six volunteers representing Sajaya Young Ladies of Sharjah (SYL). As the pink convoy progressed from one stop to another, the number of crusaders on foot kept growing.

By the time the ride headed towards its fifth stop, from the Supreme Council for Family Affairs (SCFA) to Souq Al Jubail, more than 400 volunteers including 200 from Sharjah Children, 130 Sharjah Police Academy cadets, 50 young members of Sharjah Girl Guides (SGG), seven Medcare Hospital volunteers, members of Sharjah Police who also marked 10 department vehicles with PCR branding and ‘10’ number plates, and members of Sharjah community of all nationalities and age groups had joined the pink knights of hope.

Meanwhile, on PCR’s medical route in Sharjah and across the seven emirate, there was a steady stream of people walking in for their free medical consultations. On day 2, PCR consulted with 902 people, including 201 men and 701 women, of which 23 people were refereed for mammogram, and 6 for ultrasound.

“The tenth edition of PCR has been full of emotions for us, starting at the opening ceremony,” said Reem BinKaram, Head of PCR’s Higher Steering Committee, adding “we are so proud that it’s been 10 years of believing in a beautiful message and sending it across to the entire nation, seeing the results we’ve gathered in the past few years – how many lives we’ve touch, how many we’ve managed to save and how many more we’ve engaged. When we started we were barely 50 individuals, today we are more than 300.”

“We are looking forward to the next decade and that is why we say, ‘plenty in not enough’, and every individual who is part of this campaign is united by the shared spirit of community service. The 130 cadets, for example, who walked with us today are next generation fathers who will carry PCR’s message to their homes and society – it is important that our message gets across to them,” BinKaram added.

At the last stop at Al Majaz Waterfront, a community event was organised by PCR 2020 in partnership with Sharjah Children, which engaged over 200 young members of society in a variety of edutainment activities, including art and craft, wall climbing, African drum lessons, and photo opportunities.

An accompanying mother, Amani Youssef from Egypt, stressed her keenness to bring her child to participate in the event to, “increase his awareness of the need to follow healthy behaviors and avoid harmful habits.” She praised PCR’s 10-year efforts to raise community awareness about the necessity of periodic self-examinations and medical screenings through this annual nationwide march.

Lama Hamadeh from Palestine has moved to Sharjah recently with her family. She said she joined to community event at Al Majaz with her two children to learn more about PCR and its messages, adding she was “impressed by the campaign’s dedication to protecting society and promoting welfare by educating people on the ways to avert the risk of breast cancer as well as combat it.”