During the third annual Patriots in Pink week, the first week of October, Liberty students raised over $2,000 for Wings of Karen, a local organization that supports breast cancer research.

In order to raise money, ASB students organized t-shirt sales at both lunches, the coin drive competition between grades, and the pass-the-bucket donation system at the Patriots in Pink football game on October 2.

“I am proud of the community for coming together to donate to a great cause and, on a smaller scale, proud of the ASB program for sponsoring and meeting the goals they set for this service project,” ASB advisor Michelle Munson said.

Wings of Karen is located in Maple Valley and donates directly to cancer research programs at the University of Washington.

“What intrigued me about Wings of Karen was that it is local and it is 100% donations to research. None of the money goes to salaries. None of the money goes to facilities. None of the money goes outside of research,” Munson said.

In 2012, the first year of Patriots in Pink, Liberty raised money for the Susan G. Komen foundation. Last year’s switch to a smaller organization has had some benefits. Kristi Blair, the founder of Wings of Karen, is directly involved with Liberty’s efforts to raise money, something that didn’t happen when Liberty worked with the Susan G. Komen foundation.

In the first year working with Wings of Karen, Blair provided an informational tri-fold poster and pamphlets for the football game. This year, she was unable to attend the game but sent a small speech to be read, and next year Blair plans on making a speech herself at the game’s halftime.