The Power of Pink: Health scare inspires KLN employee to raise awareness of breast cancer screening

On any given Friday during October, Building 1 (Kenny’s Candy & Confections) on the KLN Family Brands campus in Perham is awash in pink shirts. The effort has grown into a company-wide movement.

The flood of pink comes from a coordinated effort to elevate breast cancer awareness and support. The gesture is just as sweet as the treats produced inside Building 1, only much more important. Most employees wear a pink Kenny’s Candy T-shirt. Others wear shirts custom-made to honor their loved ones. The warehouse crew, consisting largely of men refers to the day as “Real Men Wear Pink on Fridays.”

Human Resources has also responded to the company-wide effort by making available to its workforce educational resources such as pamphlets and fliers. Pink, of course. These are placed on the bulletin board near time clocks to ensure everyone sees them. The company has also changed its health insurance plan so that 3D mammography, which is considered to be the highest quality type of breast cancer screening technology, is covered as preventive care.