First off, a huge, ginormous thank you to everyone who participated, spread the word, learned something, and shared that knowledge! I would especially like to acknowledge Tammie Lister and Pelf Nyok. Tammie has designed the site for the past three years and Pelf stepped up this year to help me manage the event, helping to get even more engagement and making things fun.

Second off, let’s do the numbers…

As in the past two years it is difficult to get a specific count on how many people Went Pink, however with our sign-up form, sites like Technorati and Google’s Blog Search, and social networking sites like Bebo keeping track of theme users I feel confident with the following number:

~15,700

Can I get a “Hells yeah!”

There are three main reasons for such a jump in support this year: 1) this is the third year so we’ve built up some momentum, 2) over the past 3 years (this one included) many designers have created easy-to-apply themes lowering the level of entry for more people, and 3) Twitter; word spreads fast there.

What Else Happened?

Our Facebook Cause garnered 17,508 new members during the month of October 2008. And via that cause we raised $680! That may not seem like a lot of money, but again the purpose of this event is not primarily to raise money.

On a related note, I am slightly annoyed at Susan G. Komen. They redesigned their site sometime after the first week in October and broke the link to our donation page on their site. I didn’t find out about this until a few days ago so that aspect of the event turned out to be a bust. My apologies for that. Next year I will keep better track of things like that.

You

Pink for October is people! I am not suggesting we make Soylent Pink, but without you this event goes nowhere. I know that sounds obvious, but I want you to understand my appreciation for you. Thank you.

A big thank you also to the seven people who shared their story this month. Each story was an example of how Breast Cancer has impacted someone’s life and in turn how they view the world. This is an important aspect of understanding diseases; there are real people at the other end of those statistics.

What Now?

Pink for October only runs for the month of October each year. Already sites are reverting back to their original designs, but obviously Breast Cancer doesn’t follow a calendar.

There are lots of ways to stay involved for the next 11 months. In a way, too many to list and not all of them are for everyone. But however you stay involved (or don’t because we all lead busy lives) you now have 304 days before I start bugging you about Going Pink for October again.

Alright, girls and boys.. After a month of looking for sponsors and running the contests, I must say that I have had a lot of fun doing this. Thank you very much, Matthew, for giving me the opportunity to do this, and thank you for believing in me.

So, without further ado, I hereby announce the winners of our 12 contests:

Contest: Ribbon
Prize: Go Pink for October mug by Dana P. @ PeaPod Studio
Winner: Laurie

Contest: Mammogram
Prize: A blog review by Bloggeries
Winner: Tina

Contest: Self-breast exam
Prize: 30-minute design consultation by Jacob C. @ Just Creative Design
Winner: Kristarella

Contest: Microscope
Prize: Survivor buffs by Hayley T. @ Cancer Survivor Stuff
Winner: Kayce D.

Contest: Lump
Prize: A pair of gemstone earrings by Catherine @ La Perle Jewellery
Winner: Sandy

Contest: Mastectomy
Prize: Tile Necklace in Crabapple Floral choker by Lisa C. @ Polka Dot Cottage
Winner: Sandy

Contest: Ultrasound
Prize: A banner ad design by Selene B. @ iDesign Studios
Winner: Sandy

Contest: Bra
Prize: “Hearts and Tears” by Moon @ Custom Moonlight Designs
Winner: Kristarella

Contest: Share your story
Prize: A woven wire beaded bracelet by Sharon H. @ Mana Moon Studios
Winner: FL Hopkins (My Story)

Contest: Design and win
Prize: A single-use premium theme by Bhavesh R. @ PremiumThemes.net
Winner: Evelyn T (P4O vertical banner)

Contest: Breast cancer is…
Prize: A year of webhosting, which includes 200MB disk space, 10GB monthly bandwidth, 5 addon domains and 5 MySQL databases by Emily @ Swank Web Style Design Studio
Winner: The Laundress

Contest: What have you done in conjunction with P4O?
Prize: Lean Cuisine Lunch Tote by Laurie and Nikki @ Our3Day
Winner: Sandy

Congratulations to all winners! You will receive an email from me in the next few hours, so please get in touch with your sponsor and arrange for the delivery of the item/product that you have just won, OK?

To all our sponsors, thank you very much once again for making my Pink for October so meaningful :D

See you guys next year!

– Pelf Nyok

This is the last in a series of eight a la photo hunt contests that will be held here on Pink for October, in an attempt to get more people involved during the Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The word for today is BRA. This is a simple one, isn’t it? :D

That’s right. Go look for a picture, or a comic strip, or draw one if you can, that best describes a bra, obvious or otherwise. But please make sure that your picture is work-safe and children-safe (we hope to keep this contest and website friendly, and not adult-oriented). Then write a description (or a joke or an anecdote) about it on your blog (also, please do not copy-and-paste from Wikipedia or other online sources) and don’t forget to leave me a comment in the comments section! If you didn’t leave me a comment and your link, I wouldn’t know that you have participated, and most of all, your name will not be in the draw! Again, be creative and think out of the box :D

The comments section for this post will be closed at 11:59 pm on Thurs, Oct 30th, and the winners for these a la photo hunt contests will be announced on Oct 31st. Please visit the contest page and the sponsors page for more information.

– Pelf Nyok

Remember about a month ago I said we have 4 extra prizes for our contests? In the first bonus contest, I invited you to share your story and in the second bonus contest, I invited you to design (and share) Pink for October buttons/badges/banners. In the third bonus contest, I invited you to complete a sentence beginning with “Breast cancer…” in no more than 20 words. Now, in this fourth (and last) bonus contest, I am asking you to tell us ALL that you have done in conjunction with Pink for October.

It is very easy to participate — All you need to do is write a blog post on your blog, telling us what you have done since October 1st to spread awareness on breast cancer. Have you been writing about breast cancer every other day? Have you been talking to your friends about self breast exams? Have you been reading up about the myths and truths regarding breast cancer? Have you been volunteering in a hospital, helping cancer-stricken patients? Have you been walking for a cure?

Whatever it was that you have done, we would like to know ALL about it. But don’t forget to leave us a comment in the comments section! Otherwise we wouldn’t know that you have participated! :D

On Oct 31st, I will randomly pick one blog post, and the lucky winner will win one of these prizes. It’s that easy! :D

Good luck!

– Pelf Nyok