In this edition
last month I promised to unveil Pershouse Produce's exciting new community project.

This year Pershouse Produce is delighted to announce our community partnership with the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia and the Kim Walter's Choices Program - an important breast cancer initiative. There is plenty of information about the two charities later in this newsletter.

This month we launched the key component of the campaign, our new dynamic forklift duo - Patsy and Persy. When you see the pictures I'm sure you'll agree they look fantastic - they are certainly turning heads here at the markets!

But this is only one part of our community campaign that we have called 'Looking After Each Other'. The high incidences of prostate cancer and breast cancer among many of our family, friends and industry colleagues has prompted us to also encourage everyone to GET CHECKED. Early detection saves lives and so we intend to remind you all to look after their health and visit your GP's for regular check-ups. It might just save your life.

The only thing left to say is:

Can you help?

Introducing 'Persy' and 'Patsy'
The Brisbane Produce Markets is often described as ‘another world’. The unsociable hours, and rough and tumble world that is the Markets, surprisingly underpins a really tight bond between those that work there.

Out of this sense of mateship, Pershouse Produce Managing Director, David Pershouse, came up with an idea to help raise awareness and money for the Kim Walter’s Choices program and the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia.

“Most of the blokes out here are at that age where we are starting to fall apart, and I noticed a real increase in many of the fella’s having troubles with their prostates. Equally, many of their wives were also being diagnosed with breast cancer.” said Pershouse.

“Being a husband and father myself, I really wanted to do something to help fight these insidious diseases and provide support for sufferers.”
“It’s all about looking after the health of our mates and their families.

And so, with the help of Toyota Material Handling Queensland and Electro Cut Signs, ‘Persy’ the blue forklift and ‘Patsy’ the pink forklift were born.

Laura Koman, marketing manager for Pershouse Produce, said the aim of the forklift campaign is to raise awareness throughout the Brisbane Markets and the produce industry in general about these diseases, and to encourage people to go and get checked.

“We wanted something really lively and eye-catching and these two forklifts certainly stand out from the crowd.”

“With around 3,000 people working or doing business in the Markets it’s important that they are noticed if we want to get the message out there. Early detection is crucial and it’s not as bad as most men think – they now have a blood test that can help to detect prostate cancer” said Koman.

Pershouse Produce hopes to raise money for these charities through acquiring sponsors for the forklifts and also conducting regular fundraising drives throughout the year.

“We are in this for the long haul. To get the early detection message out there will take time. And, given we have that important urban rural connection we want to spread the word right throughout our extensive industry network.” said Koman.

And with such alarming statistics it is a really important message to get out.

“Did you know that around 3000 men die of prostate cancer in Australia each year and there are 18,000 cases of prostate cancer diagnosed in Australia each year and it can be present without any symptoms? Each year in Australia approximately 12,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer and around 2,700 women will die from the disease. This really shocked us.”

“My mother had breast cancer just on three years ago and so this is a very personal campaign for me,” said Koman, “As a mother of three children I know how important it is to be vigilant.”

"The is a great deal of interest in this campaign. I think that it has hit a nerve with many people and the statistics really hit home. In simple terms, the statistics really say to us all that if we don't already know somebody with breast or prostate cancer we soon will, or worse, it could be one of us. Getting behind the Choices campaign and the Prostate Cancer Foundation seemed like the least we could do."

Become a Forklift Sponsor Today
Will you, or someone close to you, be one of the 3000* men who die of prostate cancer in Australia each year?

Or, will you, or someone close to you, be one of the 2,640** women who die of breast cancer in Australia each year?

And what’s worse is that in addition to the deaths from these insidious diseases, some 31, 700 men and women will be diagnosed with prostate or breast cancer this year.

The statistics are alarming aren’t they? We thought so too, and decided that this year, we were going to do something to help some important organisations in their battles to find cures for these diseases, and most importantly, help sufferers get through them.

So Pershouse Produce would like to invite you to be apart of our ‘Looking after Each Other’ campaign – a campaign to raise awareness and funds for the Kim Walters Choices Campaign and the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia. Both organisations provide much needed support services for sufferers of breast and prostate cancer in urban and rural Queensland.

The exciting feature of this campaign are the unique painted forklifts – Patsy our Think Pink one and our blue Prostate Cancer forklift – Persy. We are inviting our colleagues to put their names on as sponsors of the campaign. They are loud and proud!

The aim of the forklift campaign is to raise awareness throughout the Brisbane Markets and the produce industry in general about these diseases and through this, encourage our friends to go and get checked! Early detection for these diseases is crucial.

Get Involved!

As a part of an industry that genuinely cares about its people, Pershouse Produce would like to invite you to be a part of this very special fundraising campaign by becoming a sponsor of our forklifts. Your company logo will appear on the forklifts for the duration of the campaign. All we need is your logo, your donation and we will take care of the rest!

You can join our foundation sponsors Toyota Material Handling Queensland, Electro Cut Signs and Bambrick Media and become part of an elite industry group!

To find out more, please contact David Pershouse, Joint Managing Director, Pershouse Produce on 0417 727 812, or Laura Koman, Marketing Manager, on 0417 615 463.

Together, we can look after the health of our mates and their families.

About the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia - "Be A Man'
The Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia is the peak national body for prostate cancer in Australia.

It is dedicated to:
• Providing support, information and advocacy to men and their families affected by prostate cancer via:
• Close to 80 support groups nationally;
• Prostate cancer information brochures available through GP surgeries, pharmacies and other health professionals;
• A free call 1800 information number (1800 22 00 99) for men and women seeking information about various aspects of this disease;
• www.prostate.org.au - the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia’s website, offering detailed information regarding many issues related to prostate cancer.

• Raising awareness about prostate cancer via:
• Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia Ambassadors – men and women from around the country who are available to speak to community groups and organisations about prostate cancer;
• Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia/Commonwealth Bank Rural Prostate Cancer Information evenings – leading experts and those who have been impacted by this disease speak at free public seminars, organised in rural areas around the country;
• Men’s Health Information Days, organised in capital cities around the country by the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia;
• Working with community events that support the work of the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, like Movember and Father’s Day 5 to promote awareness;
• Information for GPs and other health professionals, communicating the latest information and increasing general knowledge about prostate cancer;
• Funding research into the cause, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of prostate cancer:
• A number of research projects around the country are funded each year through Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia grants.
• Research currently funded by the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia encompasses a range of issues relating to this disease, all of which will ultimately benefit the 18,700 Australian men diagnosed with prostate cancer each year.
• The Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia research funding encourages new researchers, as well as established researchers to focus much-needed attention on issues relating to prostate cancer.

For further information about the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia please call the toll free number, 1800 22 00 99, or visit www.prostate.org.au.

www.prostate.org.au

About the Kim Walters Choices Program - 'Think Pink'
The Wesley Hospital Kim Walters Choices Program (Choices) was launched in 1998, as a legacy of Kim Walters and her vision for support services for women diagnosed with breast cancer.

Kim Walters was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 1996, whilst pregnant with her third child. She immediately underwent surgery to remove the cancerous lump in her right breast, but chose to delay chemotherapy until after the birth of her child, Jett.

During and after the treatment phase of her breast cancer journey, Kim found great support from other women who had personally experienced breast cancer. Like so many others, Kim found a level of understanding and comfort with these women, which she believed greatly helped her on her journey.

Sadly, Kim lost her 18-month battle with breast cancer in February 1998, at the age of 30. However, before she passed away, Kim expressed her desire to establish a community service which would provide help and support for other women with breast cancer.

Kim’s dream became a reality on March 16 1998 when the Choices program was launched at The Wesley Hospital in Brisbane, by her husband, patron of Choices and former Brisbane Broncos captain, Kevin Walters.

The Choices Program is a tribute to the courage and strength of not only Kim Walters, but also the countless other women who have experienced breast cancer. It provides support, counselling, information and therapies to women and men diagnosed with breast cancer, and their families.

www.uhc.com.au/choices

If you have a story or article that you think would make a great addition to Fresh Perspective contact;

Laura Koman
Ph: 07 3379 3034
Email: laura@pershouse.com.au