Caro Richards (left) and Pauline Oellermann with some of the bras that Lyon O'Neale Arnold is using to decorate its office. Photo / George Novak
Caro Richards (left) and Pauline Oellermann with some of the bras that Lyon O'Neale Arnold is using to decorate its office. Photo / George Novak
Tauranga law firm Lyon O'Neale Arnold is taking a bra-vado approach to this week's Hot Pink Walk for breast cancer - a cause close to the team's heart.
Busting the stuffy lawyer stereotype, the firm is decorating its offices with bunting made from bright pink bras.
Situated on Willow St, the home stretch of the House of Travel Hot Pink Walk on Wednesday, Lyon O'Neale Arnold will also host the only refreshment station on the walk, offering pink drinks, as well as fun photo opportunities.
The firm has personally been touched by breast cancer, having lost a staff member, Heather MacDonald, to the disease 18 months ago and supported another through treatment.
"Sadly, breast cancer touches many people's lives. We want to help raise awareness and show our support for sufferers and their friends and families," Lyon O'Neale Arnold co-director Denise Arnold said.
"With our office being situated on the Hot Pink Walk course, it was the perfect opportunity to fly the flag or, in this case, bras," she said.
Heather and I used to do the walk together long before she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Practice manager Caro Richards was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer in 2009. Then 45, the age at which women in New Zealand become eligible for free mammograms, she underwent a lumpectomy, followed by chemotherapy and radiotherapy, and is now cancer-free. "Breast cancer is more prevalent than many people realise - it is the second most common form of cancer in women after skin cancer," Mrs Richards said.
"I really want to urge other women to have a mammogram done. It could save your life."
Mrs Richards enlisted the help of her mother Merlyne Hudson-Owen in procuring the daring decorations. Mrs Hudson-Owen scoured secondhand shops, who were more than happy to donate the bras, which were then dyed "petal" pink.
"I dried them inside on a clothes horse, because I wasn't sure what the neighbours would think," Mrs Richards laughs.
"It's our way of using fun to impart a serious message. We hope this brings a smile to people's faces, while helping to raise awareness of what can be a devastating disease."
Administration manager Pauline Oellermann, who was "besties" with Heather MacDonald, and who has previously donated her waist-length hair to make wigs for cancer sufferers, raising over $3000, has also been busy with pink preparations.
"Heather and I used to do the walk together long before she was diagnosed with breast cancer. For me it's a fun way of thumbing your nose at cancer, and showing your support."
Walking the walk
* WHAT: Hot Pink Walk for breast cancer
* WHEN: Wednesday, October 21. 5pm to 7.30pm
* WHERE: Start from Masonic Park, The Strand
* "It's a celebration, it's an inspiration, it's a whole lot of fun! Get your costume organised, rally your mates, corral your colleagues, challenge other businesses and get ready, cause the pink revolution is coming. All funds raised will help Breast Cancer Support Service Tauranga provide practical and emotional support to local women experiencing breast cancer and their families."
