BRECAN JOG FOR LIFE, IBADAN, OCT 3, 2015

BRECAN Jog for Life held in Ibadan, Oyo State on Saturday October 3, 2015 was simply awesome and unique. Our lead jogger, Her Excellency, Mrs Florence Ajimobi did not give room for African time. She was prompt at 7am when only a few participants had arrived but we were saved by the bell with the arrival of a bus full of Lead city high school students. The First lady graciously gave us 15 mins and by 7.15am we took off! We sang, jogged, danced and walked as the music blared from the moving music box. At the finish point, the aerobics session was great, followed by short remarks by BRECAN President and the First lady on the significance of the month and the need for all and sundry to spread the message of early detection and timely presentation of unusual breast changes to the hospital. The guest speaker for the health talk was Dr Nnaemeka Nwafulume of Dept of Surgery, University College Hospital Ibadan. With a lay-man’s language, he explained what breast cancer was, including signs and symptoms. He allayed the fears of women from accessing breast health care from the hospital stressing that early presentation could save one from untimely death. He encouraged women to learn how to do breast self examination(BSE) to enable them become familiar with their breasts. There was a practical demonstration of BSE. Two students volunteered to demonstrate what they learned and were rewarded with Shoprite gift vouchers. A Nigerian woman based in Germany gave a testimony of her experience with breast cancer disclosing that she was a 25 year breast cancer survivor. She advised women to pay attention to their breast health and also be mindful of what they eat. She encouraged increase of intake of fruits and vegetables.

Our compere/comedian, Siaman was at the top of his game. We all had a good laugh and couldn’t get enough of him. We were also entertained by the amazing street dance of the Florish dancers, a group of budding talents that has chosen to identify with BRECAN and the fight against breast cancer. The dance competition among the participating schools was electrifying and it has over the years become the magnet for students to attend jog for life. And of course the raffle which the young and old look forward too. The foundation of the success of today’s event was laid with the handsome donation by Mr Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) to whom we are immensely grateful. Many thanks would go to Many thanks would go to Teju Specialist Hospital, Ibadan for its continued support with ambulance since 2010 and Mr Samuel Ogundele of Skye bank Ibadan for his kind donation of 15 packs of bottled water. We are indebted to Shoprite that remained the primary sponsor of jog for life, since 2008, providing mouth-watering refreshment for the attendees no matter the number and Shoprite gift vouchers for the raffle draw. Aquatek Farms Ventures has also remained steadfast in providing live catfish as an item for the raffle draw. It is important to note that the finish point is critical for the success of any jog for life. For this event, the St Patrick’s Catholic Church Bashorun under the watchful eyes of Rev Fr. Monsignor Ajibola provided the enabling environment needed to record a huge success. And it was free of charge! In addition to participants from all walks of life, schools that were present include Lead city high school, The Vale college, Tobi International, and All Saints College.

 

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