Decatur Memorial Hospital announces a grant award of $70,000     entitled "Ticket for the Cure"

Decatur, IL – March 14, 2007

The grant is funded by the revenue from the Breast Cancer scratch off Illinois lottery tickets. The grant focuses on breast cancer awareness and early detection with a special emphasis on African-American women and will be utilized between the collaborative group of Decatur Memorial Hospital, Main Street Church of the Living God, other African-American churches, the Community Health Improvement Center (CHIC), and the Macon County Health Department.

The grant funds a marketing campaign that will target the community through billboards, local television, radio and print ads. In addition, the grant provides for the purchase of breast models and videos which will be used throughout the community to demonstrate breast self-exams, dispelling mammogram fears and concerns. Community programs, on breast self-exams and an emphasis on the importance of mammograms, will also be supported by the grant. The goal is to have 500 more women, than are now being served through the Mammography Initiative with limited access to health care due to low income, seek initial or non-repeat mammograms during the grant period as a result of the marketing campaign supported by "Ticket for the Cure".

The grant will also support funding for childcare services and transportation for under-served women during their mammogram appointments. The "Ticket for the Cure" grant will also support two coordinators - one of which will be based out of Decatur Memorial Hospital and one out of Main Street Church of The Living God.

The grant compliments the Mammography Initiative program which uses funding to pay for mammograms of under-served women provided by the local annual Race for the Cure.

The grant year runs from March 1, 2007-June 30, 2008.

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