Skin cancer trek a memorial to father
MILFORD — Sherrill Cooke is a woman on a mission.
The fifth annual Bob Cooke Memorial Trek Against Skin Cancer, which will be held Sunday, is now just the centerpiece of a year-long effort to raise awareness of and funding for the disease that claimed her father’s life.
There will be a “shopping day” June 14 at the Blue Tulip, from which a portion of the profits will be donated to the Bob Cooke Skin Cancer Foundation and a masquerade ball later this summer. In the fall, the foundation will hold a second annual event in Florida.
“This is a way to honor my dad’s memory and also to help people become more aware of the danger of skin cancer,” Cooke said.
Rates of melanoma and other skin cancers have tripled over the past few years among young women, she said, partly due to the popularity of tanning beds.
Sunday’s event, which includes a timed 5k race, a “fun walk” and a festival-like atmosphere, begins at 3 p.m. at the Lisman Landing marina on the harbor. “Bring your dog, your kids in strollers and on rollerblades,” co-chairman Dennis Fendo said Monday. “Come down and enjoy the day.”
Fendo, of Fairfield, and Diane Hayden are coordinating the food and entertainment at this year’s trek, and have lined up something for everyone. There will be free massages, warm-up sessions with a personal trainer, a raffle, auction, live music for dancing, and a free dinner for participants served by area restaurants.
Participants will get T-shirts and gift bags, along with sun block and skin care products. That is the serious message along with the fun, Fendo said. Bob Cooke, a local banker and businessman who loved living by the shore, died from a cancer that is linked to prolonged, unprotected exposure to the sun.
“We have a dermoscope, a fluorescent machine that can show skin damage from the sun,” the co-chairman said. “We’ve taken it into schools like Lauralton Hall to show the effects of tanning. Most of the damage to the skin occurs before age 25.”
Local attorneys Robert Kapusta and Paul Otzel are one of the many sponsors of this weekend’s event. Kapusta said Monday that he admired Bob Cooke as a businessman and as a person, and is happy to support his daughter’s efforts.
Sherrill Cooke said the Midsummer Masquerade Ball to Unmask Skin Cancer that will be held Aug. 23 at the Milford Yacht Club will be another opportunity to raise awareness of the cancer that claimed her father in 2003.
Source : www.connpost.com
