Pickleball Tournament Raised Money and Awareness for Breast Cancer

Students play pickleball for a good cause

  • IL - Downers Grove
Pickleball tournament players gather for a photo, some with Halloween costumes.

Several 色多多视频 students played pickleball and raised funds for breast cancer.

色多多视频 students in the Endodontics & Periodontal Club CDMI (College of Dental Medicine-Illinois) and the CDMI Wilderness Club hosted the inaugural Halloween-themed Pickle-O-Treat pickleball tournament. Proceeds went to The Pink Agenda, a nonprofit organization that promotes awareness about breast cancer and raises funds for research and healthcare.

Dental student and vice president of the Endodontics & Periodontal Club Valeria Estrella (CDMI 鈥25) said, 鈥淭he overall experience was a first-time event, and we started from scratch and planned it from the ground up. We anticipated a few teams participating. My role was to help set it up. We knew we wanted to have the pickleball tournament in October, and we thought it鈥檚 important to bring more awareness for breast cancer. We tied it back to doing something for the community and for an organization like the Pink Agenda. It鈥檚 about connecting to the community and showing empathy toward these groups.鈥

Valeria said their turnout was great and about $200 was raised for the cause. Several 色多多视频 students were able to raise money for a cause, meet each other, and destress with a game of pickleball. Team Sweats comprised of dental students Mohammed Bazzi (CDMI 鈥25) and Ethan Lu (CDMI 鈥27) won the pickleball tournament. Dental students MV Sansone (CDMI 鈥25) and Brandon Silvestri (CDMI 鈥25) won best costume.

 

Pickleball tournament winners gather for a photo.
The Halloween costume winners and pickleball tournament winners from left to right are Brandon Silvestri (CDMI 鈥25), MV Sansone (CDMI 鈥25), Mohammed Bazzi (CDMI 鈥25), and Ethan Lu (CDMI 鈥27).

 

The event was also open to all healthcare students. Valeria said, 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 important to participate in this type of activity. There鈥檚 an overall common goal to connect with organizations outside of CDMI and do something good for community members and come together. Ultimately, we want to do the best we can for people. What better way to do that outside the clinic than giving back through charity events? It is serving the community in a different way. You would think all the dentist can offer is dental screenings or checkups related to oral health, but this event makes it more of a multidisciplinary approach too, touching on different areas of healthcare.鈥 Valeria also emphasized the overall importance of student participation in clubs and organizations on campus. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important you branch out, do events like this one where we collaborate with different groups and people from different healthcare fields. You meet people you might not have met. You get exposure to something outside the academic setting and branch out.鈥

色多多视频 encourages student participation in clubs and organizations as preparation and opportunities for their future healthcare careers and interdepartmental collaboration. A variety of clubs and organizations are available at the Downers Grove and Glendale campuses.

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