The start of October marks the beginning of Breast Cancer Awareness month. As charities start gaining more traction, our own E-rab volleyball team has started spreading awareness. Many families are affected by breast cancer, such as one of our senior volleyball players, Jennifer Martinez. The head volleyball coach, Sam Jumbeck, thought of an idea that would bring tears to everyone’s eyes. 

   The team created shirts saying “Strong like Irelene” to surprise Martinez and her mother Irelene. “It made me feel like there was a lot of support behind me and my mom, and there was a lot of love in the air,” said Jenny Martinez, class of 2020.  

  “She was surprised and felt special,” Martinez said when asked about her mother’s feelings. 

   “We all definitely wanted to put something to recognize Jenny’s mom on the shirt because she has been around and supported the program for all four years,” said Jumbeck. It hit the team hard knowing that Jenny and her mother are going through that process. The team wanted to show their support in any way possible.

   Teammate and one of Martinez’s close friends, Mya Foster, is also excited over the team’s actions. She also hopes the awareness the volleyball team brought to the upsetting topic will help other schools do a better job of bringing awareness.   

 “ The t-shirts were really important to me because there are so many people that are battling breast cancer, and us making t-shirts, especially for someone close to our volleyball program, really brings awareness and hopefully encourages other schools to spread awareness through their sports and programs,” said Mya Foster, class of 2021.  

   Mya Foster, class 2021, showing off the team’s breast cancer awareness shirts.