Show your Stripes in the MaritimesIt’s a cold winter’s day in Moncton New Brunswick as Jeff Garcia prepares for tonight’s event, a cocktail party to raise funds and awareness for Prostate Cancer Canada. “We’ve been planning this party for weeks” says Garcia. “At the moment we have over 130 people attending and there could be more”. Garcia, owner of Zachery Samuels, a specialty store specializing in men’s fine clothing is no stranger to prostate cancer. “I lost my dad to prostate cancer when he was 50 years old; I was only 18… I didn’t ever really get over the loss, he was taken so suddenly and so early, it was devastating”. But Garcia is set to make a difference.
Over the past several months, he has taken on the prostate cancer fight in Moncton, ordering and selling Prostate Cancer Canada ties at his store with 100% of sales going back to the Foundation. In addition, Jeff has taken on the task of introducing the PCC tie to Moncton, by hosting a cocktail party with local representatives, including the Moncton Mayor George LeBlanc, radio personality Dan Ahlstrand and local urologists.
“I’m in the business of building relationships” he says. “I know how to fit a suit, but I don’t know about hosting an event. I am proud and humbled to see all of this come together, and to be the person responsible for introducing the PCC tie in Moncton is unbelievable”. And unbelievable it was.
Throughout the course of the night several ‘experts’ took to the podium to share their thoughts on the event and the disease. One of these experts included Dr. Rodney Ouellette, CEO & Director of Discovery at the Atlantic Cancer Research Institute. ”Prostate Cancer has been ignored for too long” he says, “perhaps this is because it is a disease that’s not ‘en vogue’…but we can change that by raising awareness; awareness which will lead to funding, funding which will lead to research, and research that will one day lead to a cure.” Dr. Ouellette also emphasized how important it was to ensure that prostate cancer was not a forgotten disease, and that in order to win the battle against prostate cancer there needs to be an investment in research, which can only be done by raising awareness.
Awareness for prostate cancer is something that Jeff Garcia is hoping for. “I know a lot of people and retailers in Canada” says Garcia, “and if I have to call up each and every one of them personally to tell them about the cause, I will. I want everyone to know about the cause and the disease, I want everyone to know about the tie…I want us to beat this thing.”
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| Jeff Garcia unveils the PCC tie in Moncton | Moncton Mayor George LeBlanc and Jeff
Garcia of Zachary Samuels, surrounded by a
sea of blue striped ties in Moncton. |
