Township team raises over $4K to fight breast cancer
Mayor's team joined over 9,000 others in Making Strides walk
BY COLLEEN LUTOLF
Staff Writer

POINT PLEASANT BEACH - Many may know Township Councilwoman Ruthanne Scaturro as a local politician, but she is also a local survivor.

Scaturro was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1998 after a routine mammography came back showing something odd.

"It looked like paint had been splattered on my breast," she said.

What looked like paint was cancer, sending Scaturro into the hospital for a bilateral mastectomy at a time in her life that was already less stable than she would have liked.

"I was a single mother with two kids," she said.

Scaturro was also fearful she wouldn't have a job after the company she worked for, J&H, where she worked in human resources, merged with Ferguson Enterprises.

"It was a scary experience," she said. "But, I knew I had to be strong."

Scaturro, whose mother died from breast cancer, has been cancer-free since 1998.

"It makes me very committed to the cause," she said.

PHOTOSBYCHRIS KELLY staff Above: Some of the over 9,000 people who participated in the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in Point Pleasant Beach Sunday. At left: Brick Township High School cheerleaders Taylor Patton (l), 14, and Meagan Lyons, 14, participated in the fundraiser.

Scaturro showed that commitment Sunday when she was one of over 9,000 walkers to participate in the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in Point Pleasant Beach. Over $872,000 was raised, according to the American Cancer Society.

Mayor Joseph C. Scarpelli's team in Brick, which included Scaturro, raised over $4,100 this year, topping previous fundraising efforts, said Russell Martone, the team's event coordinator.

"That's the most we ever raised," he said. "We usually raise $1,200 to $1,600 a year. This year it just took off."

Over 100 people walked as part of the Brick team, including township employees, residents and members of both high schools' cheer squads.

Brick Memorial High School's squad raised the most cast at $1,100, winning the friendly annual competition between the two schools, Martone said.

Brick Township High School cheerleaders raised over $700.

Aside from bragging rights, the Mustangs cheerleaders also earned the privilege of keeping the mayor's trophy at their school until next year's walk.

For more information about breast cancer, contact the American Cancer Society at 1-800-ACS-2345 or visit the Web site www.cancer.org.