Dozens walk to support local breast cancer patients

The 22nd annual Lois Orange Ducoeur Breast Cancer Walk was held Saturday at Palmer Park in Donora.

Proceeds from the event will directly support breast cancer patients at Penn Highlands Mon Valley by providing much-needed comfort items to them.

The event commemorates Lois Orange Ducoeur, a remarkable woman born in Charleroi in 1911. Lois and her husband, Fernand “Duke” Ducoeur, jointly managed their family business, Orange’s. During World War II, while Duke served in the U.S. Merchant Marines, Lois courageously raised their children and ran the store. In 1955, Lois was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy. She bravely fought the disease for a decade before succumbing to it in 1965.

Members of the Penn Highlands Mon Valley oncology department, Natasha Ousky, Olivia Brickmore, Kelley Ulery, Nicole Chiplaskey, Aryana Chiplaskey, Tiffany Bradley, Debbie Zyra, Emilee Lenhart, Avaree Hawk, Michele Haftman, Deborah Burkhardt, and her granddaughter Ricki, are shown at the breast cancer walk in Donora’s Palmer Park.

Photos by J.R. Minniti For the Mon Valley Independent See more photos in our online gallery at www.monvalleyindependent.com