10/19/2007

By MICHAEL STRAND

Salina Journal

The efforts of two Salina teenagers to raise money to fight breast cancer hit a second hurdle in less than a week Thursday when a Pennsylvania-based foundation that has a trademark on the "Save 2nd Base" concept asked the girls to stop selling their similar T-shirt.

The first hurdle had come last week, when Haley Wenthe and Jessica Sheahon, seniors at Salina Central High School, planned on selling two different T-shirt designs at a home football game. However, school administrators told them the "Save 2nd Base" design, which features a baseball over each breast, was too racy to be sold or worn at school. A second shirt, with the phrase "Mustangs for a Cure," was approved by school officials.

The Salina Journal first reported on the story Thursday, including setting up an order form on its Web site, allowing the pair a venue to sell their shirts; that story spread quickly online and was picked up by wire services.

Orders from everywhere

The first e-mailed order arrived shortly after midnight Thursday, and more poured in throughout the day, Wenthe said, including five from New York, and others from Louisiana, Tennessee and California, nearly every state except Alaska, she said.

"It's been spilling in so fast we can't keep track of them," Sheahon said, saying she and Wenthe were shocked at the number of orders. Most were for the "Save 2nd Base" shirts, but about two dozen were for the "Mustangs for a Cure."

As of Thursday night, 578 of the shirts had been sold through the Journal's Web site, salina.com.

Wenthe and Sheahon planned to raise $10,000 -- the T-shirts are $10 each -- during October, which is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The money is to be split between the Tammy Walker Cancer Center and Hospice of Salina. Both girls have close experience with breast cancer: Wenthe's mother died from it several years ago, and Sheahon's mom recently completed treatment.

Please stop selling 'em

But late Thursday afternoon, Wenthe received a call from Erin Dugery with the Kelly Rooney Foundation in Pennsylvania, which owns a trademark on "Save 2nd Base," and wanted the girls to stop selling their shirts.

The foundation is named for Dugery's sister, who died from breast cancer in 2006. It works to educate high school age girls about breast cancer and to encourage those under 40 to be tested.

Wenthe and Sheahon said they had e-mailed the foundation, told it about their activities, and received a supportive reply from Kelly Rooney's husband, Sean.

Dugery said there "was a miscommunication with trademark use," and explained that securing the trademark had cost tens of thousands of dollars, and the foundation makes its money by selling those T-shirts online worldwide.

"I applaud their entrepreneurial enthusiasm," Dugery said. "We look forward to hearing about other efforts in their community to eradicate breast cancer."

The girls said late Thursday they plan to sell out their remaining shirts locally, and will refer those from outside the area to the Rooney Foundation's Web site -- www.save2ndbase.com. The Salina Journal changed its online order form to a way to contact the girls by e-mail.

And if they surpass their goal, Wenthe and Sheahon said, they're discussing donating that extra money to the Rooney Foundation.

Businesses selling t-shirts to fight cancer

Celsius Tannery, inside Wal-Mart at 2900 S. Ninth
Copper Tan, 623 E. Crawford
On the Pot, 111 N. Santa Fe
The Salina Journal, 333 S. Fourth
B&K Prescription Shop, 601 E. Iron

n Reporter Mike Strand can be reached at 822-1418 or by e-mail at mstrand@salina.com.

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