November is the time to go pink in Nelson Mandela Bay at the annual Algoa FM Big Walk for Cancer, which will be hosted on Saturday, November 4.

This year the theme is “Walk as 1,” with the slogan being “we walk for family, we walk for fun, we walk as 1”.

“What we have learned over the years from the province’s leading cancer support services is that there is always hope of remission, and that cancer in the family affects all generations,” says Dohné Damons PR and CSI Manager at Algoa FM.

The Eastern Cape Department of Health hosts a number of activations in shopping malls where it provides free screening and education in the weeks running up to the Big Walk for Cancer.“Cancer is one of the serious challenges society faces.

The Eastern Cape Department of Health fully supports the Big Walk and urges all members of the public to continue supporting the initiative. Let us all be there in numbers to demonstrate our support of cancer victims,” says MEC of the Eastern Cape Department of Health, Dr P. Dyantyi.

The annual five kilometre walk along the Port Elizabeth beach-front attracts over 10 000 people.Proceeds raised by the 2017 walk will go to CHOC (Childhood Cancer Foundation of South Africa), CANSA (The Cancer Association of South Africa) and the Igazi Foundation.

The Igazi Foundation has been treating Eastern Cape blood cancer patients since 2010, and 2017 will be its fourth year of receiving support from the Big Walk.CHOC, which helps children with cancer, and CANSA, which provides prevention and early detection services in Port Elizabeth and surrounds, are being supported for the second consecutive year.

“These organisations make a real difference in the lives of people with cancer and those close to them. It is a privilege for Algoa FM to be able to help raise funds for their work,” says Damons.

The entry fee is R65 per walker with a discounted rate of just R60 to all walkers who enter online.

There are limited pink T-shirts with the unique “Walk as 1” logo for the first 7 000 entrants.

Walkers will start at eight from the lower entrance gate in the parking area of the Boardwalk off Second Avenue in Summerstrand, and walk along Beach Road to the Beacon, ending on the Festival Lawns in the Boardwalk complex.

There will be family entertainment, food and coffee stalls available.

Registration can be completed online at algoafm.co.za, or entry forms can be collected from Brian Bands on Cape Road, Brocketts Sports in Uitenhage and Totalsports in Cleary Park Shopping Centre, Walmer Park Shopping Centre, Greenacres Shopping Centre and Baywest Mall.