Fight Colorectal Cancer is pleased to announce that we will be providing scholarships for advocates to attend Call-on Congress 2013!

Scholarship applicants must be:

• A voting resident in Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Ohio, or Wisconsin
• A colorectal cancer survivor or patient currently in treatment
• A first time Call-on Congress attendee
• “Like us” on Facebook

One person from each of the target states listed above will be selected to receive a scholarship to attend Call-on Congress. The scholarships are made possible through a private donation in memory of advocate and friend Joyce Anne Ware Longfellow, who passed away earlier this year. The aim is to help survivors come to Washington, DC and make their voices heard for the first time at Call-on Congress.

The deadline to apply is December 1st.

Get more information and apply today!

Fight Colorectal Cancer advocate Rose Hausmann

On July 10, more than 100 cancer patients, survivors, caregivers, researchers and physicians will unite on Capitol Hill as One Voice Against Cancer. “Prioritize and protect funding to fight cancer” will be the strong yet simple message they deliver to their lawmakers.

Fight Colorectal Cancer is an active member of One Voice Against Cancer and will be represented on Capitol Hill by an outstanding team of colorectal cancer advocates, but they need your support.

“I’m No Miracle” is an advertising campaign that will be launched by One Voice Against Cancer this week. Take a moment download or print the ad and email, fax or mail it to your lawmakers along with a personalized message about why funding for colorectal cancer research and prevention is important to you.

As House and Senate lawmakers consider spending for the 2013 fiscal year, they are under tremendous pressure to cut billions from the federal budget. It is our job to remind Congress that they have choices when it comes to spending priorities. Now is not the time for Congress to slow the rate of discovery and squander opportunities to transform cancer care for patients and survivors.

Please support the 100 cancer advocates (including 8 from Fight Colorectal Cancer) and email your Members of Congress in support of cancer research funding today.

Thank you for your time and support.

This 4th of July say Happy Birthday USA! in a uniquely Fight Colorectal Cancer way.

Send us a photo, create a video, or write a blog post that captures the spirit of colorectal cancer advocacy and US democracy. Let your creativity fly like the stars and stripes! 

We’ll post the most patriotic and colorectal cancer focused submissions on FightColorectalCancer.org throughout late June and July – and if your submission is posted, we’ll send you some free Fight CRC gear. Your submission must be original content. Videos should be less than 4 minutes long and blog posts under 500 words. You must have permission to publish from each person in your photos or videos.

Send submissions to enews@FightColorectalCancer.org with 4^th of July in the subject line by June 30, 2012.

On Tuesday, March 6, Fight Colorectal Cancer advocates attending the 6th annual Call-on Congress heard from staff and experts about the challenges to spreading awareness of and increasing research into colorectal cancer amid national budget challenges.

Erica and Ethan Lee of Sacramento, Calif., participate in Call-on Congress training sessions.

Training sessions with Fight Colorectal Cancer staff gave advocates a real world view of the policy and legislative landscape for colorectal cancer. They were given information about key legislation, statistics and talking points for their meetings with lawmakers that will occur on Wednesday.

“It’s so exciting to be here in Washington and on Capitol Hill to see how it all works,” said Erica Lee, an advocate from California who is attending the conference. “It’s easy to complain about ‘politicians in Washington, DC,’ but here I’m part of the solution.” Erica recently lost her mother, Diane, to colorectal cancer.

Advocates can also access a virtual toolbox of outreach strategies, via the Fight Colorectal Cancer website under the Policy and Advocacy tab. Anyone interested in proposed legislation that Fight Colorectal Cancer supports can also find information in the Action Center.

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Legislation in Congress will help raise money for colorectal cancer research without increasing federal spending.

Representative Charlie Dent

Pennsylvania congressman Charlie Dent has introduced a bill that would direct the U.S. Postal Service to sell a semipostal stamp to raise money for federally funded colorectal cancer research and prevention programs. Semipostal stamps are regular postage stamps that are sold at a surcharge over their postage value. The additional charge is a voluntary contribution by the purchaser to a designated cause.

Under the “Fight Colorectal Cancer Stamp Act” (H.R. 893), funds raised from a semipostal colorectal cancer stamp would be used for colorectal cancer programs at the Department of Defense Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health.

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