Support Breast Cancer Awareness Month on Campus

Your sister. Your aunt. Your best friend. Even YOU. Each year, thousands of women across the country are diagnosed with breast cancer. From celebrities, to someone you love, breast cancer knows no boundries, hitting the rich, the poor, the young, and the old in equal number. Now more than ever, finding a cure can mean the difference between life and death for you or someone you love. Want to help? We've come up with a couple easy ways you can raise awareness and money for research, mammograms, and financial assistance for those who are currently fighting the disease.

1. (Awareness) Feel Your Boobies Booth

The Feel Your Boobies Campaign was started in 2004 when it's founder, Leigh Hurst, happened to find a lump in her breast at the age of 33. Hurst realized that even a casual examination at ANY age can mean the difference between life and death, so she started to this cheeky campaign to remind young women that familiarizing yourself with your body is an important first step. Get permission from your school to set up a booth in your Student Union or Dorm Lobby. The organization's website has a simple breakdown of how to do a breast self-examination that you can print out and make copies of. Free stickers are also available, as well as a extensive gift shop full of fun t-shirts and items touting the "Feel Your Boobies" message. Purchase one for yourself, and encourage others to follow suit. Not only does the organization support breast cancer awareness, it also donates a percentage of proceeds to other breast cancer organizations. P.S. Get this campaign going online as well with Facebook widgets, Twitter feeds, and your own personalized "boobicon."

2. (Funding) Great Group Activities for Your Sorority, Club, or Extended Social Circle

Go to school in a big city? Check online and see if the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk is coming to your area! The yearly 3-5K event raises funds via sponsorship gathered by participants. Looking for something more fun? Follow in Princeton's footsteps! Every year, the school reaches out to local beauty school students to donate manicures in exchange for donations to benefit the Susan B. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. You can even take it a step further and raise money to supply free mammograms to women that can't afford them. Get your sisters or friends together and hit up your Greek boys, dorm buddies, and teachers. Both of these plans require ads, donations, artwork, and numerous volunteers to keep it all on track.

3. (Research) Help Support the Search for a Cure

Form a Play for P.I.N.K. event at your school to support the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. This can be anything from a friendly softball match (where players pay to play, and fans dontate money for tickets), a big dodge ball event against rival sororities or fraternities, or a day of beauty at your local spa. Have an internship or part-time job? Get everybody at work onboard for Denim Day. Coworkers pay a small donation to wear jeans, with proceeds going to Lee Jeans National Denim Day Program to support research and local community outreach for early detection and treatment.

*This month, you can make a difference simply by buying the perfect book for college. U Chic founder, Christie Garton, Sourcebooks, and the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund® have joined forces to make sure your purchase has an impact. Pick up U Chic: The College Girls Guide to Everything during the month of October (only from Sourcebooks.com), and you'll receive 10% off your purchase and a percentage of the net proceeds will be donated to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund®.