By Jonathan Freeman, CFP®, CFA, CIMA®
Leigh Hurst founded the Feel Your Boobies® Foundation in 2004, after being diagnosed with breast cancer at age 33. She was a young, otherwise healthy marathon runner with no family history of the disease. While going through treatment, Leigh realized the messages she’d seen in the media about breast cancer never resonated with her.
Committing to combat that lack of relevant information, she created the foundation to design and creatively deliver breast health education to young women, a population typically not targeted by other breast cancer organizations. Leigh, who is also Executive Director of FYB, started off by creating a funny T-shirt for her friends that said “feel your boobies,” reminding them to perform self-breast exams. Her simple, direct message resonated. After putting up a one-page website, the organization quickly went viral, attracting orders of merchandise from across the country.
Feel Your Boobies® has evolved over more than 15 years, recently refocusing its media efforts and adding a minority outreach program. The campaign targets at-risk young Black women with educational messages about breast cancer. Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among Black women. Black women are diagnosed at a younger age than white women. They are two times more likely to be diagnosed than white women and three times more likely than white women to die from breast cancer once diagnosed. The campaign received promotion on billboards, bus shelters and bus wraps around Dauphin, Cumberland, York, Lancaster and Perry Counties as well as on social media channels.
I joined the Feel Your Boobies® Foundation Board of Directors in 2018, recognizing Leigh’s passion for this very important cause. I recently became the Chair of the Development Committee and am working closely with Leigh, Development Director Wanda Burling and the rest of the development committee on a virtual fundraiser and launch for Leigh’s new book “Say Something Big: Feel Your Boobies®. Find Your Voice.”
Stonebridge Financial Group is proud to support the bold, life-saving message of the FYB® Foundation. For more information, please visit feelyourboobies.com.
As one of the Directors of Stonebridge Financial Group, Jonathan’s goal is to help lead an organization that strives to provide the highest degree of client service, integrity, and professionalism. With disciplined investment strategies that emphasize risk-adjusted returns, cost, and tax efficiency, his objective is to help the individuals, families, corporations, and nonprofit organizations that he works with to achieve their financial goals.