Support from Statesboro/Bulloch County Helps Team to Win
5/11/2011 8:45:00 PM | Football
SAVANNAH, Ga. - The Statesboro/Bulloch County team of local businessman Tim "Bubba" Hunt and Georgia Southern Football Coach Jeff Monken won the honor of kissing "Reba," one of the mascots for this year's American Diabetes Association (ADA) "Kiss-a-Pig" campaign. The largest fundraiser of the year for the ADA ended on Saturday night at the Hyatt Regency Ballroom in Savannah with the announcement that the campaign brought in more than $260,000 and exceeded its target goal. While teams were honored in several categories, the true winners are individuals who are living with diabetes.
A contest between community leaders to raise funds for the ADA, Kiss-a-Pig is a regional campaign with competitors from throughout Southeast Georgia and Coastal South Carolina. The team that raised the most money kissed a live pig, honored by ADA as the original source of insulin. The 2011 theme, "Swine Wars," was a spoof of the ever-popular Star Wars franchise and provided an excellent platform for drawing attention to a serious and common disease and sends the message that people can take measures to prevent type 2 diabetes.
The first team from Statesboro/Bulloch County team to compete in the campaign was up against 12 other teams or "Jedi Warriors." Two veteran teams slugged it out in the "Big Pig" category with the Community of Liberty County pulling out the win. The Hunt and Monken team, through donations from Statesboro and Bulloch County supporters, raised $33,619 through several events. The team was sponsored by J'Adore Bridal & Formal and Sugarland Candy, featuring sugar-free sweets. Assistance was also provided by Shane's Rib Shack of Savannah.
Funds raised during the Kiss-a-Pig campaign benefit the American Diabetes Association, the nation's leading organization dedicated to curing diabetes and improving the lives of all people affected by diabetes. Diabetes is the nation's seventh deadliest disease, killing more than 220,000 Americans each year. It is the leading cause of heart disease and stroke, adult blindness, kidney failure and non-traumatic amputations.
Many people living with this life-altering disease do not know it, partially because they may not experience any symptoms during the early stages. More than 24 million Americans have been diagnosed with diabetes and researchers believe over six million more may have diabetes and not realize it.
For more information about diabetes or the Kiss-a-Pig campaign, contact Maria Center at 912-353-8110, ext. 3091 or mcenter@diabetes.org.
