2004 News Releases

For immediate release - March 15, 2004

ARNPRIOR & DISTRICT BREAST CANCER SUPPORT GROUP AND OTTAWA REGIONAL WOMEN’S BREAST HEALTH CENTRE LAUNCH TICKET SALES FOR “CRUISE FOR THE CURE” TO THE MEXICAN RIVIERA

(OTTAWA, ONTARIO) –The Arnprior & District Breast Cancer Support Group and the Ottawa Regional Women’s Breast Health Centre (WBHC) launched ticket sales and a raffle today for the 2005 “Cruise for the Cure,” a boat cruise to the Mexican Riviera to raise funds to fight breast cancer.

The cruise runs from January 24 to February 1, 2005. Tickets start at $2,295 which includes return airfare from Ottawa, all airport and government taxes, all transfers, optional two nights at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills (for an additional fee), a “Cruise for the Cure” T-shirt, complimentary cocktail receptions and more.

Organizers are also holding a raffle for a trip for two on the cruise. One thousand tickets are currently available for $25 each through the WBHC at The Ottawa Hospital and can be purchased by calling (613) 761-4400. They are also available through various support groups including the Arnprior & District Breast Cancer Support Group.

The organizers hope to raise over $30,000 - including ticket sales and the raffle – exceeding the total raised by the first “Cruise for the Cure.”

“We hope this will be a resounding success,” says Cathy De Grasse, Program Coordinator, Clinical Services, at the WBHC. “We are counting on the people of Ottawa to support this worthy cause.”

The cruise starts in Los Angeles and visits numerous locations in the Mexican Riviera including Acapulco, Puerto Vallarta, and Cabo San Lucas.

“All of us know someone who has been touched by cancer,” says Elta Watt, President and Founder of the Arnprior & District Breast Cancer Support Group. “This cruise gives us an opportunity to have a vacation and help a great cause.”

The Arnprior & District Breast Cancer Support Group is a non-profit organization formed in 1996 to give support, love and encouragement to women diagnosed with breast cancer. The support group has grown from four to over 45 women in eight years and is a strong supporter of the WBHC.

The Ottawa Regional Women’s Breast Health Centre at The Ottawa Hospital is a regional program that provides diagnostic and supportive care by breast experts in a coordinated and compassionate manner, education to health professionals on breast health, assessment, and treatment and research into the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of breast disease. For more information, visit The Ottawa Hospital’s website at www.ottawahospital.on.ca.

For more information about the “Cruise for the Cure” tickets and raffle, please contact:

Elta Watt
President and Founder, Arnprior & District Breast Cancer Support Group
Tel: (613) 623-7455
nawatt@magma.ca

For more information about The Ottawa Hospital Foundation, please contact:

Danielle St-Aubin
Director, Communications & Marketing, The Ottawa Hospital Foundation
Tel: (613) 798-5555, ext. 12972
dstaubin@ottawahospital.on.ca