BelkGives on the Go Mobile Mammography Center Hits the Road

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Jan 28, 2013, 07:11 ET

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Jan. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The BelkGives on the Go Mobile Mammography Center hit the road today – a result of the retailer's partnership with Charlotte Radiology to take breast cancer screening and awareness to more than 100 cities in North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee in its first year.

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Belk, Inc., the nation's largest privately operated department store, held a sendoff party at its corporate offices before the mobile center rolled out for the first stop in North Augusta, S.C., on Tuesday. The center will be on the road for 49 weeks over the next year, spending two days at each stop.

"Having the BelkGives on the Go Mobile Mammography Center travel to the cities where our associates and customers live and work underscores what we've being saying for a long time – awareness and early detection saves lives," said Jessica Graham, Belk's vice president of communications and community relations. "We're excited to see it go and take Belk's fight against breast cancer on the road."

The BelkGives on the Go Mobile Mammography Center offers free, convenient mammogram screenings for women age 40 and over with no breast concerns and who have not had a mammogram in the last 12 months. All screening exams are performed by Charlotte Radiology's licensed, female mammography-certified technologists. A board-certified radiologist, specialized in breast imaging will interpret the mammogram. Confidential results will be sent to the patient and her primary care physician.

Belk's $6 million investment in this program marks the retailer's deep commitment to women's health issues and breast cancer education and is the company's single largest charitable contribution to date. Belk is the only retailer of its kind to form a partnership alongside community and health organizations by extending breast cancer screening and increasing breast cancer awareness through its own operation.

For more information, call 855-655-BMMC (2662) or go to www.belk.com/pink.

About Belk, Inc.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Belk, Inc. (www.belk.com) is the nation's largest family owned and operated department store company with 301 Belk stores located in 16 Southern states. The company was founded in 1888 by William Henry Belk in Monroe, N.C., and is in the third generation of Belk family leadership. Its belk.com website offers a wide assortment of fashion apparel, shoes and accessories for the entire family along with top name cosmetics, a wedding registry and a large selection of quality merchandise for the home. To connect with Belk via Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, YouTube, blog, mobile phone text messages or by email, go to: Belk Get Connected.

About Charlotte Radiology

Established in Charlotte, N.C. in 1967, Charlotte Radiology is one of the largest and most progressive radiology groups in the country with approximately 90 radiologists specialized in areas ranging from breast imaging to pediatric radiology. In addition to offering 24/7 coverage for more than 11 hospitals, the practice operates 13 breast centers, two vascular and interventional clinics and jointly owns and reads for Carolinas Imaging Services. In February 2011, Charlotte Radiology launched its mobile breast services across five counties in the greater Charlotte region. Today, two mobile units travel some 2,000 miles each month to bring early breast cancer screenings and detection closer to where women live and work. Accredited by the American College of Radiology, certified by the FDA and recognized as a Breast Center of Excellence, Charlotte Radiology is a national advocate for breast health awareness, collaborating with community partners and foundations to educate women about the importance of early breast cancer detection. Serving more than 100,000 women per year, Charlotte Radiology provides compassionate care, state-of-the-art care including digital mammography, breast MRI and computer-aided detection. Learn more online at www.charlotteradiology.com. To connect with Charlotte Radiology via Facebook, go to: www.facebook.com/CharlotteRadiology.

SOURCE Belk, Inc.