LA Angels honor breast cancer survivors on Mother’s Day

Julie Canning (right) and Grace McNamee, both breast cancer survivors, throw honorary first pitches. Image: angels/Instagram

ANAHEIM, Calif. – The Los Angeles Angels marked Mother’s Day by honoring three breast cancer survivors during ceremonies before Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Royals at Angel Stadium.

Candida Esteban served as the honorary bat girl. She is a two-time cancer survivor, married for 58 years and who raised three children while her husband was on deployment in the Navy.

The retired registered nurse was recognized for her strength and the positive impact she has had on those around her, a team spokeswoman said.

Julie Canning and Grace McNamee threw honorary first pitches. Canning is the mother of Angels pitcher Griffin Canning. McNamee is the team’s communications manager. Both are survivors of breast cancer.

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Major League Baseball supports efforts to reduce rates of breast cancer in communities of color.

All uniformed personnel wore caps with pink club logos on the front panel.

Many players used pink bats stamped with the MLB breast cancer awareness logo.

Players and other on-field personnel wore a pink ribbon symbolizing breast cancer awareness on their uniforms along with pink wristbands. The pink ribbons also appeared on bases.

MLB will direct 100 percent of its royalties from Mother’s Day apparel to MLB Charities, a nonprofit organization, that will then donate those funds equally to Stand Up To Cancer and Susan G. Komen to support their missions in the fight against breast cancer.

In 1980, Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying sister, Susan, that she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer forever. In 1982, that promise became the Susan G. Komen organization, which has gone from having $200 and a shoebox full of potential donor names to the world’s largest nonprofit source of funding for the fight against breast cancer, according to the
organization.

Susan G. Komen bills itself as the only organization that addresses breast cancer on multiple fronts including research, community health, global outreach and public policy initiatives. (CNS)