Merrill, Bank of America Employees Raise Funds to Fight Breast Cancer

DETROIT — This October’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month marks the return of the Merrill Wears Pink campaign, where Merrill Wealth Management and Bank of America teammates across Metro Detroit and beyond are stepping up and using the power of wearing pink to raise funds and draw attention to the breast cancer fight

First launched in 2018, the campaign encourages Merrill team members to wear pink clothing items and lapel pins to the office throughout October and to commit to raising funds to support the American Cancer Society’s efforts to fight breast cancer. In its first six years, employees have raised $680,000, including $156,000 in 2023.

Merrill Private Wealth Advisor Tom Pursel, who is based in Bloomfield Hills, came up with the idea in 2017 and quickly launched the campaign one year later. He said the Merrill team members look forward to giving to this important cause every year.

“The fight against breast cancer is a topic that’s important to so many of our Merrill team members, and many have faced it in their own families,” Pursel said. “Through the Merrill Wears Pink campaign, we are able to do our part in fighting this disease, and the amount of interest in this fund-raiser continues to grow every year. We’ve come a long way from our first year of the campaign and look forward to our biggest year yet in 2024.”

Pursel said a goal for the 2024 Merrill Wears Pink campaign is to reach a cumulative total of $1 million donated since the launch in 2018.

Merrill offices in Michigan that will participate in Merrill Wears Pink this year include: Bloomfield Hills, Dearborn, Wyandotte, Auburn Hills, Clinton Township, Farmington Hills, Grosse Pointe, Ann Arbor, Saginaw, Traverse City, East Lansing, Grand Rapids, Muskegon, Kalamazoo, and Portage. Outside of Michigan, Merrill offices in Chicago, IL; Columbus, OH; Indianapolis, IN; Louisville, KY; Peoria, IL; Cincinnati, OH; and Pittsburgh, PA are among those taking part. The effort will include around 150 Merrill employees.

In addition to the Merrill offices, Bank of America team members in Michigan are also invited to take part in the fundraising efforts throughout October.

Bank of America will also match employee charitable donations to eligible nonprofits through the Bank of America Charitable Foundation Matching Gifts program.

“When we started, it was just my office and a couple others, and now we’ve expanded the Merrill Wears Pink campaign to multiple states” Pursel said. “Seeing your Merrill team members wearing the pink shirts, ties, dresses and lapel pins each day is a reminder of the important work we have committed to doing this month.”

Final results of the 2024 campaign will be announced in November once all donations are tallied.

Every dollar raised helps the American Cancer Society save lives from breast cancer by funding innovative breast cancer research, providing education and guidance to help reduce risks and offering comprehensive patient support to patients and their families.