In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) is displaying pink ribbons on various trucks throughout Connecticut.
Breast Cancer Awareness month is celebrated throughout the state and the nation during the month of October. This year, CTDOT will be displaying the iconic pink ribbon on the hoods and doors of four plow trucks and four support vehicles. There will be two trucks located in each of CTDOT’s four districts.
This initiative is the result of the advocacy of long-time CTDOT employee Karen Hussey, who is a 12-year breast cancer survivor. Hussey, who has worked for CTDOT for more than 36 years in various roles in the Highway Operations and Maintenance Bureau, brought the idea forward in effort to show support and solidarity for the hundreds of thousands of people living with breast cancer.
“It’s wonderful to see CTDOT honor and recognize those who have been impacted by this horrible disease by displaying pink ribbons on trucks throughout Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Even if someone has not been personally diagnosed with breast cancer, odds are they know someone who has,” said Karen Hussey, a Connecticut Department of Transportation Processing Technician. “It’s my hope everyone traveling throughout the State of Connecticut who sees a CTDOT vehicle displaying these beautiful pink ribbons will reflect on their own journey, honor those who are battling this disease, and will remember those no longer with us.”
“I appreciate Karen sharing this idea and her personal journey. I am honored to support her and all the people who have been affected by breast cancer,” said Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto. “Displaying the pink ribbons on eight of our trucks is our way of letting the community know we are with them, we support them, and we hope that one day, we can see breast cancer eliminated.”
According to the American Cancer Society, it is estimated that more than 268,000 people in the United States will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer this year, and overall, around one in eight people are at risk of developing breast cancer sometime in their life. Approximately 3,500 people will be diagnosed with breast cancer in Connecticut this year. It’s the second-leading cause of cancer death in Connecticut women, after lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.
