When celebs bowled against cancer
‘Bowling4Boobs’ was organised by Stand Up To Cancer Naija which is in the fore front of raising awareness and funds to fight cancer in Nigeria. In this year’s maiden edition, celebrities were invited for a bowling tournament in Abuja. Nollywood stars such as- Uche Jumbo, Uti, Ini Edo, Dare and others graced the occasion and […]
‘Bowling4Boobs’ was organised by Stand Up To Cancer Naija which is in the fore front of raising awareness and funds to fight cancer in Nigeria. In this year’s maiden edition, celebrities were invited for a bowling tournament in Abuja. Nollywood stars such as- Uche Jumbo, Uti, Ini Edo, Dare and others graced the occasion and had a competition of bowling involving four groups all in a bid to raise money for the victims of breast cancer.
Debbie Mangut, one of the organizers told Weekend Magazine that “the event is actually geared towards raising fund to fight cancer to enable us go into the grassroots areas and offer free screening for women for breast and cervical cancers. Most of the celebrities invited are people who have had connection one way or the other with cancer. “We also involved some of them who are willing to help people with that sort of disease. It’s not an annual event but it is an event that will run throughout this year. By the end of next month, we will be in Lagos; we will also be in Accra, UK and the USA. We decided the event should take off from here in Abuja because this is our base and they say charity begins at home. Our aim is to raise up to N10 million to be able to go into the grassroots so that we can help the women detect cancer early through free screening,” Debbie explained.
Uche Jumbo who shed light on why she took interest in the event says she seen it’s excruciating effect on the cancer victims she had come across in the process of making the home video; ‘Holding Hope’ a film on cancer awareness. Before I went on set for ‘Holding Hope’ and meeting the cancer survivor and the one that died, it was always something that happened to people I don’t know or had direct contact with. When I met the woman that inspired Holding Hope, it became real to me. There are many people who do not have the privilege or medical assistance to fight this scourge. There are many women who when they feel a lump in their breast they begin to think it is the devil (spiritual) meanwhile it is actually a cancer lump. Not like the normal person that will walk in to the hospital to have a check and they find out it is real. I am proud of some of my colleagues who honored the invitation of this event. (Laughs) I have never bowled before and I am going to make a fun of myself. The bottom line is to raise money for a worthy cause. I have been assisting them and I am here with my team totally by my sponsorship, that is my own little contribution.
I am happy to have been a part of Bowling for Boobs. I am particularly proud that my team “team UJ” won especially as it was for a great purpose. I am an advocate for creating awareness for cancer, hence my movie “Holding Hope” and I am readily available to stand up and be part of any initiative to fight cancer and end ignorance ‘that cancer is a white man’s sickness.’”
Ini Edo also had something to say on the event “I am very happy to be here, it’s a very wonderful cause. I would rather be here than anywhere else. My contribution is to put up a team of people and then we contribute whatever we have, gather the funds together and make our own donations. My idea about cancer is that it is a deadly disease that nobody wants to have because even though it is treatable, nobody still wants to go through it. It is a disease that rips off the beauty of a woman. I have a project I am coming up with not necessarily in the area of cancer but also for the betterment of lives of people who are under privileged.”
Mrs. Ada Eguzouwa, a cancer survivor narrates her experience “In our communities, a lot of people are shy and it has prevented them from going for cancer test. As a survivor of breast cancer, I am a better person and I feel fulfilled. I am calling other women to go for the test and it may not be as bad as they think it is. I am a mother of three and I am a nurse. Having breast cancer is just like having malaria, just as there is the possibility that one can die from it, there is also the possibility of surviving”
The event ended with team UJ (Uche Jumbo) winning the bowling tournament.