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participating. Since then, the shirts have become part of the identity,
featuring memorable slogans that make a statement, such as:
• In 2012, “Locking Up Cancer” with artwork of handcuffs.
• In 2013, “Targeting Cancer” with a picture of a target.
• In 2014, “Cancer is a Word. Not a Sentence” with a picture of a
woman behind bars.
• For 2015, “Patrolling for a Cure” with a picture of a police
cruiser.
“Every year, I go crazy trying to think of slogans,” Weaver relates. “I
literally drive around on midnights, trying to come up with ideas. This
year, we have added a male version with a pink blade and the blue
lines so we can open it up to the men.”
Opening up to add Men in Blue Fighting in Pink is important for the
ladies because they know what is ultra-important to winning this fight.
“We’re such a small part of the population so we had to open it up
to raise as much money as possible,” Castronova reasons.
Inviting the men, and the children – Jennings, for example, walks
with her two daughters; Guglielmotti has walked with her son, Aiden
– also is an expression that the group is as strong as the sum of the
parts.
You might notice that their photo of the cover of this issue has the
Ladies showing their thin pink line from the back. And the photo you
see on page 30 intentionally hides their faces. The “uniforms” they are
wearing in these photos are meant to accentuate the shirts and hats
and ribbons, not the people. They wanted the photo taken at Ross
Dock in Palisades Interstate Park with the George Washington Bridge
in the background because every October the bridge is lit up in pink.
Unfortunately, the threat of Hurricane Joaquin prevented the pink
lightbulbs from being installed. But the point they make that it’s about
the blue and the pink and the ladies, not any one lady.
“It’s about the whole picture, not Heather form Washington Township or Rachel from Paramus,” emphasizes Castronova. “If we can use
our influence as police officers to reach out to as many people as we
know, that’s what we set out to do.”
So the police presence for the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
Walk at New Overpeck Park in Ridgefield Park is more than just blocking off the roads. The presence includes Weaver, Castronova, Guglielmotti, Morgan, Jennings – and her daughters Meghan and Courtney –
Niamh McGuinness of Bergen County Police Local 49, Ana Bedoya of
Englewood Local 216, Christina Rae of Eastern Bergen County Local
45 and probably a whole lot more.
They bring their when- ۙKY