The second annual Daffodil Days effort at MIT, coordinated by Janet Plotkin of the MIT Women's League and aided by Paul Parravano of the Office of Government and Community Relations, is now underway.
Sign-up sheets for ordering bouquets of daffodils to benefit the American Cancer Society have been displayed throughout MIT during the month of February. This is the last week to pre-order the bouquets.
Last spring, 16 departments participated in selling 1,200 bouquets; this year, all 42 of MIT's departments, labs and centers are involved, and the number of volunteers has tripled compared to 1998.
Proceeds from Daffodil Days will go toward expanding educational programs to help prevent cancer, providing assistance for people who have been diagnosed, and funding research into controlling the disease. With the help of fund-raising and research into treatment, the relative five-year survival rate for cancer has reached 58 percent, up from 41 pecent just 15 years ago. The American Cancer Society selected daffodils, the first flower of spring, as a symbol of hope for further success againt the disease.
The $5 bouquets will be delivered to DLCs on March 24. Additional bouquets will be sold in Lobby 10 and in the Medical Department atrium by the Women's League and the Center for Cancer Research during the week of March 24.
Anyone with questions may call the Women's League office at x3-3656.
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on February 24, 1999.
