Maracaibo, Venezuela…[Emilet Poloche/IAD Staff]
Nearly 1,000 Seventh-day Adventists took to the streets this month in Maracaibo, Venezuela, to promote breast cancer awareness. The May 13 event, called “To You Women”, brought hundreds of church members to the city’s main plaza, La Vereda del Lago.
“The main purpose of this activity is to motivate and call attention to the community to pursue good health,” said Raiza Ramirez, women’s ministry director for the church in the West region of the country. This is the first time a breast cancer awareness walk was held by the church in the region, said Ramirez. “This experience will help us continue the tradition in the next few years,” she added.
Holding signs warning against the dangers of breast cancer, church members, young people and pathfinders distributed missionary literature and invited on-lookers to gather for a special program in the plaza.
A musical concert by local church groups was offered and lectures on breast cancer awareness were held by local medical doctors. A special mobile clinic staffed by medical professionals offered free stress tests, breast examinations and more.
The event, which was organized by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the West region of Venezuela, was covered by the local media and broadcast on the national television channel Globo Vision.
