Co-founder Gary Sinclair, whose wife passed away four years ago, emphasises the importance of early detection.
“You can't play the waiting game, because what we didn’t know back then, I thought a lump was the only symptom,” he said.
“Cancer is 103 per cent curable in stage one breast cancer, so you have more chance of getting appendicitis than you do with stage one breast cancer, so don’t be scared of it.”
The initiative began when Gary and his best mate, Matthew Whittson, whose wives both suffered from breast cancer, decided to take action.
“We were just sitting there one night, you know, curing world peace in the back room on a Friday night, and we just thought, we need to do something,” Gary said.
TSTL maintains an active Facebook page that provides information about self-examination, symptoms and support services.
“Jump on our Facebook page every Friday. We have posts about how to check yourself, what symptoms to look for, and sometimes where to go and get support if you need it,” Gary said.
“We have had three women come back to us on our Facebook page and send us messages saying thanks very much, because of what you have done, we went and found breast cancer in stage one”.
Gary pointed out that breast cancer not only affects women, with one in a hundred men, diagnosed with the illness.
The organisation operates on handshake agreements with participating stores, ensuring donations support local communities.
In Echuca-Moama, the Worklocker Echuca store actively supports and participates in Tradies Support the Ladies.
Jump on board and help Tradies Support the Ladies by popping down to Worklocker Echuca, 130 Hare St, phone 5482 1822, and pick up your work shirts.
“If you have to buy five work shirts for your company, just make the fifth one pink and wear it on Fridays,” Gary said.
Worklocker Echuca donates 10 per cent of all TSTL sales to the Cancer and Well Being Centre and the Primary Mental Health Care Program at Echuca Regional Health.
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