Yow remembered this week to raise cancer awareness
Kay Yow did more than just win games in her time at NC State. She advanced the position of women in athletics. And she established a legacy of diligently fighting breast cancer.
“NC State was Coach Yow’s home for 34 years. It was a 22-year battle with breast cancer,” says Megan Smith, director of marketing and development for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. “She did it in a public arena.”
This week, NC State celebrates that fight and her legacy by holding events that will lead in to the annual Hoops 4 Hope game against Wake Forest on Sunday, Feb. 12.
On Wednesday, a Rex Mobile Mammography unit featuring Yow’s picture will be on campus for health care professionals to administer breast exams. The idea is convenience, and the unit’s mission is to extend quality mammograms to areas where women have difficulty getting health care. The unit will be back on campus Feb. 8.
This Wednesday also kicks off Miles 4 Kay, an event aimed at raising awareness and funds for women’s cancer research. Participants will hop on pink treadmills and work to meet a goal of 5,000 miles. Cybex, a company that makes treadmills, will donate 10 cents per mile in February to Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
There will be other events on Hillsborough Street leading up to the Feb. 12 women’s basketball game.
“People in the community still hold that personal connection to Coach Yow,” Smith says. “It shows you just how much the name Kay Yow resonates with everyone here.”
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