Delaware teen makes pink scarves to help in fight against cancer

Published: 2005-01-10

WILMINGTON, Del. (CNS) -- Caitlin Connors was in a fabric shop in late October when she saw a pink fleece fabric with dark pink ribbons, signifying Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Connors, a sophomore at Padua Academy in Wilmington, remembered that the mothers of some of her former classmates at St. Mary Magdalen School had developed cancer, and the mother of a friend of hers had died of the disease. "I wanted to do something to help them," said Connors. The pink fabric gave her an idea. For her confirmation project, Connors made and sold fleece scarves and donated the proceeds to the American Cancer Society to help women with breast cancer. She underestimated how popular the scarves would be. "We got enough material for 56 scarves," she told The Dialog, the newspaper of the Diocese of Wilmington. "The first day after orders went out, I got 127 orders. I kind of panicked." The orders kept coming -- 310 in all. Connors and her parents, Tom and Marybeth Connors, scoured local shops for more pink fleece material. They enlisted the help of Connors' grandmothers, both of whom live in the Philadelphia area, and ended up with five different patterns.

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