Auto shop raises money for cancer research

   When getting your car serviced at Barrett Automotive’s shops in Cornelia and Eastanollee, you can also support breast cancer research.
   The local auto repair shop is hosting the “Brakes for Breasts” fundraiser for the fourth year.
   This October, Barrett’s Automotive is one of hundreds of shops in the country that participate in the fundraiser.
   Shops offer free brake pads and shoes, and customers only have to pay for things like rotors, calipers and labor. At the end of the month, 10 percent of the proceeds are donated to the Cleveland Clinic Breast Cancer Vaccine Research Fund.
   Nicole Barrett, who owns Barrett Automotive with her husband Justin Barrett, said they came across the fundraiser opportunity and didn’t see anyone else in the area participating so they “jumped on the bandwagon.”  
   “For the Cleveland Clinic, it gives them money, but it also helps the client as well, or the customer of ours, because they’re getting free brake pads,” Barrett said.
   She added that if someone does not have the need for new brake pads but still wants to donate, they can make a tax deductible donation at the organization’s website.
   Research on these breast cancer vaccines began in 2002 with the Cleveland Clinic’s Dr. Vincent Tuohy who died earlier this year.
   The lab is continuing research on the vaccine which  is designed to direct the immune system to attack the tumor and prevent it from growing. The first dose of the vaccine was given in a clinical trial in October 2021.
In February of this year, researchers at Cleveland Clinic began a new trial to focus on people who are cancer-free but at a high risk for developing breast cancer and have chosen to have a preventative mastectomy.  
   Barrett Automotive raised $3,629 dollars in 2022 and made this year’s goal $5,000.
   Last year, Cleveland Clinic raised a total of $200,000 with the help of the 106 repair shops across 28 states in the U.S.