If you know the RevitaLash® Cosmetics story, you know that our commitment to supporting breast cancer causes is a personal one. Inspired by our Co-Founder Gayle Brinkenhoff’s own battle with the disease, we dedicate resources year-round to funding research and improving the lives of women facing breast cancer. And we couldn’t do it without your help!
That’s why we want to give you a closer look at all the great work your support has made possible over the past year, plus a preview of what’s in store for 2022.
Stepping Up
The charities supported in 2021 focus their efforts on a range of issues encountered by patients during cancer treatments. We’ve partnered with organizations that have a direct impact on improving – and saving – patients’ lives. Here are a few of the initiatives that made a difference:
- Pink Sleeve Event: During our annual October Pink Sleeve event, over 100,000 units of RevitaLash® Advanced and RevitaBrow® Advanced were purchased worldwide (a new record for the event!), each with a portion of proceeds being donated. As part of our Greater Giving program, our international partners donated to 14 global cancer charities.
- Raise It for Research: A simple idea with powerful results. The revitalash.com shopping cart includes the option to donate a few cents from each purchase by rounding up the total. Through this “spare change” initiative, our customers raised more than $10,000 for City of Hope, a national leader in cancer care conducting groundbreaking breast cancer research and achieving immense strides in new therapies and dynamic treatments.
- City of Hope Campaign: Along with other beauty brands, we took part in the inaugural #givingisbeautiful social campaign, which raised $450,000 for cancer research during Giving Tuesday!
- THRIVE Fashion Show: With Breast Cancer Resource Center (BCRC), RevitaLash® Cosmetics was once again the sponsor of this glamorous event where cancer survivors strut their stuff on the catwalk, complete with designer clothing and full hair and make-up provided by RLC. BCRC has been renewing the lives of cancer patients for 25 years. All services are free to help ease the burden of breast cancer. The THRIVE Fashion Show is the feel-good event of the season.
- Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara: The psychological effects of chemotherapy and hair loss can be traumatic. When it comes to hair, there is a scalp cooling treatment that, when applied during chemo, can help reduce damage to hair follicles. The result? Patients may lose less hair. Problem is, the therapy is expensive and not everyone can afford it. Until now: A donation from RevitaLash® Cosmetics made the cold cap therapy available to any patient that walked through the doors of the Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara.
- Simply from the Heart: What a beautiful idea: raising patients' spirits with “Glam Boxes” and both virtual and one-on-one, bedside beauty sessions. We sponsored this organization, making it possible for their Glam Squad to pampering women with a mini mani/pedi, makeup application, hair styling, hand massage, and more. These makeovers can transform a woman’s outlook and spirit. If only for a day, the transformation can be miraculous.
- The 7th Annual Gayle Brinkenhoff Breast Cancer Symposium: Hosted by RevitaLash® Cosmetics with City of Hope, 2021’s virtual conference brought together the best of the best in cancer research to share the latest information about breast cancer treatments and potential cures. The Symposium was broadcast to physicians and researchers in 25 states.
2022: More Giving, New Partnerships, Bigger Impact
After a record-breaking 2021, with your help, we’ll go even further this year.
Besides the several organizations, hospitals, and research facilities we partner with year after year, we’ve added Boston-based and world-renowned Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH), specifically the Mary Horrigan Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology.
The goal of the Connors Center is to advance the understanding of female-specific diseases and the effects of new, innovative therapeutics. The researchers there are doing remarkable work: pushing the boundaries of treatments that could revolutionize the kind of gender-specific care women receive.
This year, RLC will fund three programs with BWH and the Connors Center:
- Presenting the Gayle Brinkenhoff IGNITE award, a grant of $50,000 to support the work of a junior researcher at BWH.
- Sponsoring the New England Women’s Health Luncheon, a $500,000 fundraising event to help fund BWH and the Connors Center.
- Funding the Connors Center Patient Navigator Program, which offers patients access to a medical advocate or guide to help them navigate the often confusing world of appointments, specialists, insurance providers, and more.
And finally, working with the Dear Jack Foundation, RLC is sponsoring the Breathe Now retreat for adolescent and young adult cancer patients, survivors, AND families, an initiative being led by Gayle’s very own children working within RevitaLash® Cosmetics. Since its inception in 2006, the Dear Jack Foundation has served hundreds of young adult cancer patients and survivors through programs that provide support and community to a younger demographic far too often forgotten.
The Work Continues – And You Can Help
Beautiful lashes and brows can positively affect how you look and feel. And they can also make a difference in the lives of breast cancer victims around the world. We’re grateful for every purchase that allows us to give back, and we encourage you learn more about the important work each of our partners does to support patients and to help, someday, end breast cancer.