{"id":2890,"date":"2024-12-30T14:47:07","date_gmt":"2024-12-30T14:47:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prairieprod.vcnastaging.com\/?p=2890"},"modified":"2024-12-30T14:47:52","modified_gmt":"2024-12-30T14:47:52","slug":"pink-pride","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/pink-pride\/","title":{"rendered":"Pink Pride"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gail Pashup<\/strong>\u00a0has had many moving experiences since she first climbed behind the wheel of truck number 8270, which dispatches from Prairie Yard 32 in downtown Chicago.<\/p>\n

But as Pashup will tell you, 8270 is no regular rig. It\u2019s one of 7 bright pink concrete mixers operating in 3 states \u2013 each a rolling symbol of Prairie\u2019s commitment to conquer breast cancer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a folder filled with notes, business cards and pictures of people who\u2019ve taken time out of their day to share stories of winning their fight with breast cancer, and many other kinds of cancer too,\u201d Pashup says. \u201cI also hear sad stories of people who lost their battle, but fought with courage.\u201d<\/p>\n

An incredible moment<\/h2>\n

Pashup remembers an especially powerful moment during a pour at 600 Lake Shore Drive in Chicago.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was standing near the concrete pump when I saw a worker peek out of a nearby door. He held up a finger to let me know he\u2019d be right back. He brought a fellow worker with him, and when this guy saw the pink truck, his jaw dropped and he began to cry.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I stopped the drum, I timed it so he could see the ribbon and the breast cancer awareness imprint on the side. He thanked me and walked away. Later I found out he\u2019d lost his wife to breast cancer just 6 months earlier. She was only 34 years old.\u201d<\/p>\n

Year-long push for the cause<\/h2>\n

There\u2019s a surge of interest in the pink trucks every October, as Breast Cancer Awareness Month calls attention to the disease that claims nearly 40,000 lives annually in the U.S. alone.<\/p>\n

Beyond daily deliveries, the trucks make special appearances at cancer fundraisers and community events throughout the year. But Prairie\u2019s commitment goes well beyond the rose-colored rigs. In 2013, employees in Illinois will raise nearly $9,000 in support of cures, says\u00a0Lee Ann Hulse<\/strong>, captain of Prairie\u2019s Bridgeview-based Relay For Life team benefiting the American Cancer Society.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe call ourselves the Prairie Pacers,\u201d Hulse says. \u201cOur July walk brings in lots of support, but we hold raffles, bake sales and other events to increase our total donation.\u201d Since 2010 the Pacers have raised nearly $25,000 for Society programs funding research, awareness and prevention.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll of us have family, friends and loved ones affected by breast cancer,\u201d she explains. \u201cOur dedication to fight this disease really runs deep.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than just breast cancer<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Prairie employees work to create hope for those facing other forms of cancer, too. Dollars given to Prairie\u2019s Relay For Life team support research to cure all cancers, Hulse notes.<\/p>\n

Prairie employees have extended a caring hand to children with cancer, including\u00a0Colton Cook<\/a>\u00a0of Pekin, Illinois, whose home needed renovations to support his health following intensive cancer treatment. In Indiana, under the leadership of\u00a0Doug Dalton<\/strong>, Prairie supporters have raised thousands for\u00a0Jill\u2019s House<\/a>, a respite home for those in cancer treatment at the nearby Midwest Proton Radiotherapy Institute.<\/p>\n

Making a difference every day<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Experts say we have miles to go before we put cancer behind us for good. But for now, Prairie people feel positive about the role they\u2019re playing in the drive to find cures.<\/p>\n

Bill Griffin<\/strong>, who works out of Prairie Yard 6 in Romeoville, Illinois, says he feels great whenever he\u2019s behind the wheel of a pink truck. \u201cPeople are always stopping to take pictures, both on job sites and while I\u2019m on the road. I hear nothing but positive comments and I know it means a lot to people facing cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Want to book a pink truck for your cancer fundraiser or community event? Contact Lee Ann Hulse at\u00a0lahulse@prairie.com<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gail Pashup\u00a0has had many moving experiences since she first climbed behind the wheel of truck number 8270, which dispatches from Prairie Yard 32 in downtown Chicago. But as Pashup will tell you, 8270 is no regular rig. It\u2019s one of 7 bright pink concrete mixers operating in 3 states \u2013 each a rolling symbol of […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2891,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2890","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2890","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2890"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2890\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2891"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prairie.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}