SALEM — One day last May, two friends sat inside a Wal-Mart Vision Center office, crying in each other’s arms. Char Hall had just told her co-worker at the Seneca eye care facility, Donna Waites, the floor-rattling news: Hall’s biopsy for breast cancer had come back positive.

Although Hall was understandably shaken, she has remained resolute, an attitude which wowed Waites.

“She didn’t blame God or say ‘I may die,” Waites said. “Right from the start she said, “I’m going to beat this. This is just something I’ve got to deal with,’ like it was just another bump in the road. She’s amazing.”

Breast cancer is a devastating disease that has struck nearly 2.5 million American women in the past decade. It’s also the leading cause of cancer deaths among women between the ages of 40 and 59. All women are at risk for developing breast cancer. Risk increases with age.

Breast cancer strikes like a shark from the shadows: 85 percent of women who develop breast cancer have no known risk factors or family history. There is no known cure.

The fact breast cancer could hit someone so close to her inspired Waites to help promote awareness of the disease. She decided to start at her own church, Little River Baptist in Salem. A small church — the congregation numbers around 40 most Sundays — Little River has nevertheless felt breast cancer’s sting. Waites said there were about five breast cancer survivors within the flock.

“They say one in eight women will get breast cancer, and I was just looking around the church and thinking about that,” Waites said. “I just wanted to put some information out there. Teenagers need to do self-exams; it’s just as important for them as older women.”

Waites uses the church bulletin to disseminate breast cancer details. She hands out the pink ribbons that have become symbols of the fight against the disease. There’s also a table set up at Little River with assorted literature about breast cancer.

When Waites needs more than a brochure, she confers with someone who’s been there. Char is eager to offer shortcuts, like what organization will supply wigs, or how to do your make up after losing eyebrows to chemotherapy.

After receiving her diagnosis in May 2007, Char immediately dove into chemotherapy.

After those treatments — and a mastectomy last fall — she is now cancer-free.

Char’s cancer was discovered during a regular annual mammogram, a fact not lost on the 45-year-old Waites, who schedules yearly check-ups and performs regular self-exams.

“You have to be aware of your body,” Waites said. “The sooner you catch it the better the survival rate. So go to your doctor.”

Waites is currently working with the Upstate South Carolina Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure to hype up Pink Sunday. Held this year on Oct. 26, Pink Sunday is a grassroots effort with local churches in 11 South Carolina counties to educate the members of their respective congregations on breast cancer during October Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Last year, over 300 Upstate churches participated receiving over 45,000 packets of educational material about breast cancer. Komen Upstate South Carolina Affiliate is launching the campaign to raise breast cancer awareness.

As part of Pink Sunday 2008, the Komen Upstate Affiliate will provide each participating church with up to 500 breast health information packets. Each individual church is responsible for coordinating the event at their own Oct. 26 service. Churches have the opportunity to celebrate survivors in their congregation as well as honor those who have lost their battle.

Many participants wear pink to commemorate the day. The Upstate Affiliate can provide a script for church representatives to read during services, explaining the program. Any church in the Affiliate’s 11-county service area of Abbeville, Anderson, Cherokee, Greenville, Greenwood, Laurens, McCormick, Oconee, Pickens, Spartanburg and Union counties is encouraged to participate in broadcasting a maxim of early detection.

Breast cancer is more aggressive in pre-menopausal women than post-menopausal. At 98 percent, the probability of survival is encouragingly high — but only in cases of early detection and treatment.

Said Waites: “I think the biggest thing is, yes, it can happen to you.”