The water flowing in the Newberry Street fountain is teal because September is National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
During a brief ceremony Wednesday morning, Debbie Mills and Alicia Owens of Gail’s Anatomy got the organization’s commemoration efforts started a little early by pouring dark, greenish-blue dye into the fountain.
The more than 20 people who joined them included Dr. Todd Wright, general manager and executive vice president of AECOM’s Nuclear & Environment Strategic Business Unit, and Aiken City Council members Gail Diggs and Lessie Price.
“The fountain is in a good location to help us spread awareness about ovarian cancer to Aiken’s residents and visitors,” Mills said. “There are festivals and different events in the area, and The Alley is close by. We’re also putting up teal bows in downtown Aiken. ”
Mills is the founder and director of Gail’s Anatomy, and Owens is the co-director.
In 2007, Mills’ daughter, Gail Mills, died of ovarian cancer less than four months after being diagnosed with the disease. A graduate of Silver Bluff High School and USC Aiken who worked at Target, she was only 30 years old.
“I wanted to make something positive out of the whole experience and tell people about ovarian cancer and try to save lives,” Debbie said.
Not long after Gail’s death, family, friends and co-workers formed a team for an American Cancer Society Relay For Life fundraiser.
“The theme was ‘Night of a Thousand Stars,’ which had to do with movies and TV shows, and Gail’s favorite TV show was ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ so we called our team Gail’s Anatomy,” Debbie said.
Afterward, Debbie decided she wanted to do more to educate women about ovarian cancer, and that led to Gail’s Anatomy becoming a group with a year-round mission to raise awareness.
“I want to prevent what we went through from happening to someone else,” Debbie said. “Because it happened to Gail, I know it can happen to anybody. She did everything she was supposed to do. She went to the doctor every year. We didn’t have any history of ovarian cancer or breast cancer in our family.”
Symptoms of ovarian cancer include bloating, pelvic or abdominal pain, loss of appetite or feeling full more quickly than usual and a more frequent or urgent need to urinate.
For more information about Gail’s Anatomy, visit the organization’s website, www.ovariancancerawareness4life.org, or its Facebook page.
