The author of Tuesdays With Morrie returns to nonfiction to celebrate Chika, a young Haitian orphan who forever changed his heart. Join Circle of Care, a Connecticut based non-profit supporting families with children with cancer, and Mitch Albom on January 30th for a night honoring CHIKA: A little girl, an earthquake, and the making of a family. Through the operation of the Have Faith Haiti Orphanage in Port Au Prince and in reaction to the 2010 hurricane devastation, Albom met his daughter, Chika. The young orphan had developed a life-threatening brain tumor and with no doctors in Haiti able to help her, Albom brought Chika to America. The story follows their two-year, around-the-world journey to find a cure for an inoperable brain tumor.
Gates Restaurant invite you to drink pink and enjoy local, award winning comedian – Carolyn Paine debut her stand-up show on Thursday, October 10th 7-9pm. Carolyn’s shorts have been recognized by the Women in Comedy Festival, New Haven International Film Festival and she won at the International Comedy Festival in CA! She herself has been affected by breast cancer having lost both of her grandmothers to the disease. Gates have created a cocktail called ‘The Pink Warrior’ to honor Breast Cancer Awareness during the month of October. Its vibrant color is complimented with Tequila infused with blood orange, grilled pineapple, grilled jalapeños, and cactus pear.
Though she had no family history of breast cancer, New Canaan resident Jacqueline Dorman goes diligently for mammograms and—as an additional (not substitute) screening tool that sometimes can detect masses where mammography isn’t helpful, the American Cancer Society says—ultrasounds. Last December, through ultrasound, the 45-year-old mom of three discovered that she had two masses in her breast, and one of them was malignant. After testing positive for “BRCA2”—sometimes called the “breast cancer susceptibility gene”—Dorman in January underwent a double mastectomy, reconstructive surgery and, fearing the development of ovarian cancer, a partial hysterectomy. On Thursday, Dorman—a Scotland native and town resident for 10 years who is a professional lawyer—will join other local breast cancer survivors for New Canaan’s first-ever Pink Stroll, a joint effort of the Chamber of Commerce, local merchants (full list below) and Connecticut affiliate of Susan G. Komen. The event, to run 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at participating shops, will see Dorman and other survivors model fashions of the individual stores while donating 10 percent of all proceeds to Komen and raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research.