When Bob Terreberry arrives at Friendly's on Monday, Oct. 8, he won't head inside for a bite to eat.
Instead, he'll take a seat on the restaurant's lawn, and he doesn't plan to leave for several days.
The Maple Springs resident will sit by Main Street in Brooklyn Square until he sells 2,500 pink breast cancer bracelets. He'll have a tent set up on the lawn and will sell the $5 bracelets 24 hours a day.
Article Photos
Bob Terreberry, left, and Tony Sabino, Friendly’s manager, are shown outside Friendly’s in Brooklyn Square. Terreberry will sit outside the restaurant, beginning Monday, Oct. 8, at noon. He will sell pink breast cancer bracelets 24 hours a day on the restaurant’s lawn.
P-J photo by Scott Shelters
"If I could be gone by the weekend, that would be good," Terreberry said. "Seriously, I'm ready to do whatever. What's five days?"
Terreberry, 70, is raising funds for next year's Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in Washington, D.C.
The walk, held in May, has donated more than $440 million to breast cancer programs since 2003. Terreberry and his wife, Irene, are members of Team Golden Girls, which has set a fundraising goal of $25,000 for the 2013 walk.
Although Terreberry plans to bring his team halfway to that mark by selling bracelets, the Oct. 8 event is about more than raising funds.
"I look at this as an awareness event," said Terreberry, whose daughter, Jennie Cox, is a two-time breast cancer survivor. "I've been wearing this (breast cancer) bracelet for years, and every day I think of my daughter."
After the fundraiser begins Oct. 8 at noon, Terreberry will be joined by representatives from several area organizations, including the Breast Cancer Support Group, WCA Digital Imaging, the Zonta Club's Lily's Hope and Patient's Pharmacy. Cox, a West Virginia resident who recently underwent a double mastectomy with reconstruction, and her two children will also attend. Breast cancer information will be available.
"We want to get the brochures out there," said Terreberry, noting his daughter found her own cancer both times. "We want to get something in their hands. We want people to not be afraid to find information."
Those who buy bracelets will get the chance to win the Polywood chair Terreberry will sit on while selling bracelets. Brian Nelson, Falconer Vac Shop owner, donated the chair.
Although Terreberry will sell bracelets at all hours if necessary, he doesn't expect to have many visitors after Friendly's closes at 11 each night. He'll have his car on the restaurant's property if he wishes to escape the elements, and he will visit the nearby CVS if he needs anything else.
"Everybody is worried about overnights," Terreberry said. "I'm not worried."
While spending a few days or more on Friendly's property, Terreberry isn't going to starve. Manager Tony Sabino said the restaurant will provide food for its outdoor guest as needed.
When Terreberry approached Sabino with his idea to sell bracelets on the restaurant's property, the manager signed on almost immediately.
"It's a very worthy cause," he said, noting the Breast Cancer Support Group meets monthly at Friendly's. "We like to get involved in the community."
In addition to the bracelet fundraiser, the Oct. 23 Family Fun Day at Friendly's will also benefit The Avon Walk. Coupons for the event can be picked up from Terreberry on Oct. 8.
Team Golden Girls includes Irene and Bob Terreberry, Matt and Cathy Smith, Jennie and David Cox and their friends from West Virginia.
Information on a March 2013 fundraiser for The Avon Walk will be available later. The team will receive help from a fundraising committee consisting of Marge Fiore, Betty Lou Blixt, Margie and John Fuchs, Gale Svenson-Campbell, and Barb and Ed Slumsky, while trying to top the $25,000 mark.
"This county is really supportive of anybody who has any type of cancer," Terreberry said.
For more information, contact Gale Svenson-Campbell at 753-6319 or gales1949@gmail.com, or Irene and Bob Terreberry at 386-2532 or terreberry4792@windstream.net.