I mentioned on my Facebook feed a couple of weeks ago that I was heading to my 20th High School Reunion. It was a lot of fun and I’m glad I went.
One of the things it reminded me of, and I thought I’d write about, was the importance of protecting one’s skin from the sun. Even though it’s August, and we’ll be spending less time outdoors in just a couple of months, it’s still important not to suffer sun damage.
My former classmate, Tara Simantel Parla, was one of six memorialized at the reunion. She died in 2012 after battling skin cancer. Before she passed away, she started the Passion Foundation, a nonprofit with two goals: (1) building shade structures for playgrounds to protect young children from the sun’s damaging rays and (2)Â educating people about skin cancer and ways to prevent sun damage.
Check out the foundation website if you’re interested in learning more, and keep yourself sun safe. You don’t have to hide from the sun; it gives you vitamin D. But, don’t ignore damaging exposure, either. Â Finally, don’t forget that all skin can be damaged by the sun. My daughter suffered a minor burn (I feel terrible), despite her skin being dark enough I wouldn’t have thought she would burn.