Checkers game brings awareness to breast cancer

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Charlotte Checkers took on Oklahoma City Friday night.

The Checkers lost but the game wasn't about the score.

The goal was to raise money in the fight against breast cancer.

 "It takes one night of the year and recognizes people that have been affected by breast cancer in one way or another, said Tera Black, COO of the Charlotte Checkers.

This is the eighth year the Checkers are participating in Pink in the Rink.

Players will where pink jerseys and money from each ticket will go to local agencies – one of them is Go Jen Go, named for Jen Pagani.

"This is a matter that needs some press," Pagani said last year about the importance of early screening.

She's been coming to Pink in the Rink every year but not Friday night. She lost her battle to cancer this week at 44 years old, leaving behind a husband and two sons.
 
"Even when she was in her last final days, she was able to still look at us and look at her family and look at her little boys and know she was just here to be happy," said Danielle Adkins with the Checkers Foundation.

“This game and this loudness and energy and the pink and the fans will set the tone for what we want her legacy and her memory to be," said Britt Yet, a friend and Go Jen Go board member. “She's inspired all of us to carry on her legacy and hopefully create a tremendous amount of awareness for not only her foundation but all those others supporting those who go through breast cancer.”

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WSOC