Faculty Member Making Strides For Noble Cause

To most greeting card consumers, October signifies only the joys of Halloween. More importantly, October has also been deemed National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This is the time of the year when pain, progress and celebration are used to help in the fight against a disease that has impacted millions.

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer is just one of the many events held this month to raise money and awareness. FAU Professor Dennis Palkon is just one of the many people trying to do those same things.

Dr. Palkon has been a member of FAU’s health administration for the last 24 years. Several years ago, he became the faculty adviser for the American College of Health Care Financial Administrators.

This is an FAU club whose sole purpose is to provide community service and aid. The club has participated in several service projects in the last year, namely the Lion’s Club and a massive diaper drive for the children of destitute migrant workers.

One of the club’s biggest projects is their involvement with Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. Of the 40 club members, 15-20 will form a team that will participate in this event.

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer is a non-competitive walk started by the American Cancer Society in 1993. The money raised by Making Strides goes to fighting cancer on four fronts: research, education, advocacy, and patient services.

There has been a team representing FAU at five of the last seven walks in the area. In the previous drives, Palkon’s team has raised over $15,000.

In honor of this year’s homecoming theme, the team has been named the “Palkon’s Pirates.” The walk will take place on October 22 at Spanish River Park, located at 3001 N. State Road A1A. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m. and the walk is to commence at 9 a.m. It is a five-mile walk, but you can take as long as you need to finish, or just walk as far as you are able to.

The goal this year for Palkon, is to raise close to $2,000. However, in previous years, they have raised closer to $3,000. During the entire event, about $140,000 is normally raised for the ACS. And while FAU’s money may seem like a drop in the bucket, every little bit counts.

He urges students to reflect on the impact cancer has had on their lives and to give what they can. Even if you cannot attend the walk, you can still donate to the team.

If you can’t help this time around but would like to later on, Palkon will be organizing another team to participate in Relay For Life, another American Cancer Society sponsored walk that will take place early next year.

Initially, Dr. Palkon got involved with Making Strides because it was, “just another worthy cause that I was interested in.” However, when Palkon’s mother was diagnosed with cancer, his personal interest became a personal battle. Now Palkon walks because his life, like so many others, has been impacted by this terrible disease. Though he knows it is a hard fight, he also knows there is always hope.

If you would like to make a donation or help with the event, please call 561-297-3208 or e-mail Doctor Palkon at [email protected].

Bryan A. Davis can be reached at [email protected].By Bryan A. Davis

Jupiter Homecoming Carnival

The all-purpose field at the MacArthur campus in Jupiter was transformed into carnival grounds on Tuesday, Oct. 11 in conjunction with the SGA-sponsored Homecoming celebrations.

Students strolled around a perimeter of hokey carnival games like Bonk-a-Frog and Drag Race, radio station booths from The Buzz 103.1 and 760 AM, the ESPN channel, and concession stands providing corn dogs and funnel cafes.

Children of professors and staff swarmed the bounce house obstacle course and the contraption called the Elastarun that stood in the middle as the main features. In one corner, students raced each other up a rock climbing wall that the U.S. Army provided while others won prizes in the Program Board-sponsored Bingo tent.

“I’m here for the free stuff,” admitted Matt Berman.

Others, like Rob McCurdy, just wanted to win something.

“I’m frustrated. I haven’t won bingo and I’ve been here since the beginning!”

Still, the carnival had its critics, like Angelica Rodio who confessed, “It’s kind of lame. There’s all of this open space and not much to fill it. It’s good for little kids but I miss some of the things they had last year…the laser tag, the chair swings.”

Despite the sweat and powdered sugar that fragranced the air, and the games for kids and senior citizens, the Homecoming Carnival was as fun as one made it and even more so when there were free prizes involved.

Elizabeth Cannon can be reached at [email protected].By – Elizabeth Cannon