BMW and The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation Celebrate
12 May 1999
BMW and The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation Celebrate The Kick-Off of Third Year of The Ultimate Drive(TM) Crowds of Supporters Turn Out to Cheer on Drivers as They Head Across
America to Raise Money for Breast Cancer Research
NEW YORK, May 11 -- Amidst a crowd of well-wishers cheering
and waving special pink rally flags, BMW of North America and the Susan G.
Komen Breast Cancer Foundation today announced they will join forces for a
third year to host The Ultimate Drive for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer
Foundation. The program puts the community in the driver's seat to fight
breast cancer. Through this successful, grassroots fundraising effort, more
than $2 million has been raised. BMW's goal will be to raise $1 million again
this year.
"People in communities across the United States have been coming out
in droves to get behind the wheel of a BMW to help us 'drive away' breast
cancer. In just the first two years, more than 60,000 people have gotten
behind the wheel -- and this year, we're on course to top 100,000 Ultimate
Drive participants across the country," said Victor Doolan, President of BMW
of North America.
From May through October, two fleets of 18 specially-marked BMWs will
criss-cross the USA, making pit-stops in approximately 200 cities nationwide.
An all day fundraising event will be held in each city and town, where
participants can test drive one of the BMWs. For every mile test-driven BMW
will donate $1 to the Komen Foundation.
"We at the Komen Foundation are thrilled to be teaming up with BMW for a
third year of this great program, which is going to help us put the brakes on
breast cancer. The Ultimate Drive is a wonderful and very visible campaign
that creates tremendous awareness and provides consumers -- women and men --
with a fun and unique way to join in the fight against breast cancer," said
Nancy Brinker, founding chair of the Komen Foundation.
As the 1999 Ultimate Drive kicked into gear in New York City, drivers in
each of the 32 gleaming silver and checker-striped BMWs simultaneously revved
up their engines under a giant arch of pink balloons as Brinker and Doolan
waved them on with special starter flags.
Brinker and Doolan also honored Cindy Geoghegan, a breast cancer survivor,
as Komen's 1999 National Hero for her efforts to save lives through awareness
and early detection. Geoghegan exemplifies the spirit of so many hundreds of
other local "Heroes" at the community level. She left her paid position in
public relations to devote herself full-time to volunteer breast cancer
advocacy.
A local "Hero" will be recognized in each community for his or her
outstanding work in the fight to help eradicate breast cancer. A photograph
of each "Hero" will be affixed onto a specially marked BMW "signature" car,
which will also be signed by the tens of thousands of Ultimate Drive
participants to produce an ever-growing collage of the real people who are
making a difference in the drive.
In each community, BMW centers and the Komen Foundation will host a
special all-day fundraising event. The programs in each city begin at
10:00 a.m. and continue until 4:00 p.m.
Participants are invited to join in the construction of "The Banners of
Support" comprised of statements and sentiments to raise awareness in the
battle against breast cancer. Drivers are encouraged to bring along
photographs, pressed flowers or other sentimental tokens that will be
integrated into the commemorative Banner. At the end of the Ultimate Drive
program, each Banner from nearly 200 BMW Centers across the nation will be
combined to form a majestic collage.
A minimum donation of five dollars to submit a panel to "The Banners of
Support" will serve to further the Foundation's fundraising efforts. A
package containing a breast cancer ribbon pin, along with a support panel,
will be available at the BMW Center.
The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation was established in 1982 by
Nancy Brinker to honor the memory of her sister, Susan G. Komen, who died from
breast cancer at the age of 36. The Foundation is a national organization
with a network of volunteers working to eradicate breast cancer as a
life-threatening disease by advancing research, education, screening and
treatment.
The Foundation is one of the nation's largest private funders of breast
cancer research and community programs. In addition to funding research, the
National Grant Program funds innovative breast cancer education, screening and
treatment projects for the medically underserved. Hundreds of thousands of
women and men receive the life-saving message of early detection through
Komen's outreach efforts.
BMW of North America, Inc. was established in 1975, when the company
assumed marketing and distribution responsibilities from a previous private
distributor for BMW vehicles in the U.S. from the previous private
distributor. Since then, the company's North American operations have grown
to include marketing, sales and financial services organizations in the United
States and Canada; a South Carolina manufacturing operation; a design firm in
California; and various other operations throughout the U.S. and Canada. BMW
is represented in North America through a network of more than 370 automobile
and 190 motorcycle retailers in the United States and Canada. BMW (US)
Holding Corp., the brand's North American headquarters, is located in
Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey.
People wishing to participate in The Ultimate Drive(TM) for The Susan G.
Komen Breast Cancer Foundation are encouraged to call toll-free 877-4-A-DRIVE
(877-423-7483). For more information about the program and online
registration, you can log onto the World Wide Web on the Komen Foundation home
page at http://www.komen.org or the BMW home page at http://www.bmwusa.com.
