RIT Faculty and Students Come Together to Fight Cancer

Rebecca Housel, professor of language and literature at Rochester Institute of Technology, has battled and beaten cancer three times. Now she intends to help others combat the disease by organizing the Sisters Walk to raise awareness and money for the Women’s Fund at Pluta Cancer Center—a fund that aids patients during treatment by helping to maintain a good quality of life.

The inaugural 1-mile fun walk will take place on RIT’s campus 9 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 11 beginning in parking lot D. Registration is $20 and participants will receive breakfast and a Sisters Walk tote bag.

“According to the American Cancer Society, 345 out of every 1000 women in New York state are afflicted with cancer each new year,” Housel says. “The walk is an opportunity to raise awareness and give practical help to local women.”

The event will include a raffle after the walk, as well as free chair-massages from 10a.m. to 11:30a.m., courtesy of the Onondaga School of Therapeutic Massage.

There will also be an opportunity to create an art tile in honor of or in memory of a family member, aided by student-artists at RIT. Each tile will be put into a permanent display to acknowledge those who have struggled with cancer and will be available for viewing in the lobby of the Pluta Center, located in downtown Rochester, in November.

“The Sisters Walk will provide an opportunity to honor women with cancer—our wives, daughters, mothers, sisters, and friends,” Housel adds.

RIT Residence Life, Student Affairs, and First-year Enrichment are supporting the walk. Additional organizers include Pete Reske, an RIT resident advisor and fourth-year art student, and Amy Steed, a local physical therapist who works with cancer patients. For more information on the walk, people may contact Professor Housel at 475-4422 or rahgsl@rit.edu or Amy Steed via e-mail at asbh7@juno.com.