Today begins National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and October's 31 days offer 31 (or more) opportunities to make a difference in your own life and the lives of others.

Here are 31 ideas we've come up with, and we encourage you to add your own to the online version of this story at www.cherokeetribune.com.

1. Talk to your relatives to learn if there's a history of breast cancer in your family.

2. Attend the Second Annual Breast Health & Cancer Awareness Day program on Saturday in Canton. Presented by Radiotherapy Centers of Georgia-Cherokee County and Northside Hospital-Cherokee, the free event is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the NH-C Conference Center at 1130 Bluffs Parkway. There will be information from local doctors on wellness and prevention and treatments and technology, as well as a breakfast, lunch and a survivor program with a special butterfly release. (678) 965-4756, ext. 115.

3. Do a breast self-exam once a month. If you don't know how, see the American Cancer Society website at www.cancer.org for step-by-step instructions or ask your doctor for help.

4. Participate in one of the Georgia Breast Cancer Coalition Fund-sponsored events planned in Atlanta such as the Pink Ribbons fashion show and lunch at the Ritz-Carlton in Buckhead on Monday; the Pink the Green golf tournament at the Golf Club of Georgia on Monday, Oct. 11. (404) 633-6499; www.gabcc.org.

5. Make an appointment with your doctor to talk about breast-cancer detection. Women in their 20s and 30s should have a clinic breast exam at least once every three years, and woman 40 and older need one annually.

6. Support a Cherokee County team - SUCH AS the Ladies of Cherokee County 911 or the team led by Kathy Overly of the Cherokee Sheriff's Office - in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure walkathon in Atlanta from Oct. 22-24 by making a financial donation. Each walker is asked to raise a minimum of $2,300 to participate. www.the3day.org

7. The Reinhardt University softball program will sponsor its second annual Susan G. Komen for the Cure fundraiser on Saturday, Oct. 9, at the Waleska campus at 7300 Reinhardt College Cir. The first game is at 1 p.m. Financial donations are needed, as are raffle items and refreshments. (770) 720-5559; law@reinhardt.edu.

8. Shop "pink" by buying products from the website at www.shopkomen.com, which benefits Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Merchandise for sale includes all kinds of apparel, accessories and jewelry, flip-flops, key chains, water bottles, coffee cups, bags, towels, Christmas ornaments and cards, aprons, potholders, candles, picture frames, baby bibs, dog collars and much more.

9. Visit Autumn Hill Nursery & Landscaping from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday for Pink Day, a breast cancer fundraiser, at both locations: 4256 Earney Road in Hickory Flat and 100 Pea Ridge Road in north Canton.. There will be contests, a scavenger hunt, ballroom dance demonstration, door prizes, refreshments and raffles, and everyone is encouraged to wear pink. Admission is free; donations will be accepted. Ten percent of all proceeds from sales that day plus $5 for every Invincibelle Spirit Hydrangea sold will be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Quilt raffle tickets will be sold for $1 each or six for $5, also benefitting the foundation. (770) 442-3901.

10. Lobby elected officials to support the Breast Cancer Bill of Rights and sign the online petition at KomenAdvocacy.org.

11. Ask your employer if you and your co-workers can wear jeans to work on Friday, Oct. 8, as part of Lee National Denim Day in exchange for making a donation of $5 each or more. www.denimday.com

12. Lace up your sneakers and start training to walk 60 miles in the 2011 Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure walkathon in Atlanta from Oct. 21 through 23. You can walk as an individual, join a team or lead your own team. Walkers also are asked to raise at least $2,300 to join in the event. www.the3day.org

13. Tell a loved one about the importance of doing a breast self-exam every month.

14. Make a financial donation to an organization such as Susan G. Komen for the Cure (www.komen.org), the National Breast Cancer Foundation (www.national breastcancer. org), Georgia Breast Cancer Coalition (www.gabcc.org) or the American Cancer Society (www.cancer.org).

15. Ask your church, synagogue, mosque or other place or worship to participate in Worship in Pink from Oct. 22-24. The weekend is an opportunity to raise awareness through such events such as encouraging congregation members to wear pink, including information in the weekly bulletin and inviting survivors to speak about their experiences. (404) 459-8700; worshipinpink2010@gmail.com.

16. Call your Avon lady and order the "Crusade Lips for Life" reusable roll-up tote for $5 to benefit the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade. No Avon lady? Order one online at www.avon.com.

17. Play a round in the BridgeMill Ladies Golf Association's Eighth Annual Rally for a Cure tournament to benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The four-person scramble tournament is on Wednesday at the BridgeMill Athletic Club at 1190 Bridgemill Ave. in Canton. Registration is at 10 a.m., with a shotgun start at noon. The entry fee is $70 for club members, $90 for nonmembers and includes a bag lunch, goody bag, raffle, silent auction, prizes and dinner at Featherstone's Grill at BridgeMill. The cost to attend the dinner only is $30. JanSmall3@gmail.com.

18. Ask your friends, relatives and co-workers to help you form a Passionately Pink for the Cure team and raise money and awareness together. Suggested activities include a pink bake sale (with pink desserts) or a pink pajama party. www.info-komen.org/BPP.

19. If you have long hair, get a haircut and donate your ponytail to Pantene Beautiful Lengths, which makes wigs for women fighting cancer. If your hair isn't long enough, start growing it! www.beautifullengths.com.

20. You're never too young to join the fight against breast cancer. If your children want to help, let them set up a lemonade stand, hold a bake sale or collect change to donate to an organization that supports breast cancer research.

21. If you're 40 or older, schedule a mammogram every year. Northside Hospital's mobile mammography van will be at the Kroger at 5341 Old Highway 5 in Lebanon on Thursday and at the location at 4045 Marietta Highway in Canton on Oct. 26. Participants must meet hospital and American Cancer Society guidelines to qualify. Appointments are required, and insurance can be filed. (770) 667-4400.

22. Say a prayer for all women battling breast cancer and their families. Ask your church for the names of specific people you can pray for.

23. Walk in the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walkathon on Saturday, Oct. 23, at Atlantic Station in Atlanta or make a donation to a participating team. Walkers are asked to make a minimum donation of $35. www.cancer.org.

24. Fantastic Sams locations in metro Atlanta will hold a haircut-a-thon on Wednesday, Oct. 20. All haircuts will be $10, and half of the proceeds will be donated to Komen Atlanta, the local affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Donations for Komen Atlanta also will be accepted at the salons. www.fantasticsams.com.

25. Head down to Stone Mountain Park at 2 p.m. on Saturday to cheer on cyclists including a team from Cherokee County as they ride in the 24 Hours of Booty fundraiser to raise money for cancer research. www.sweetridesga.org.

26. Read the inspirational book, "Promise Me" by Nancy G. Brinker about the loss of the author's sister to breast cancer. Better yet, make it your book club's book or the month, so you can talk about it with friends.

27. Form a team and start training and raising money today to participate in the Cherokee County Relay for Life walkathon benefitting the American Cancer in May. www.relayforlife.org.

28. Riverstone Residential Group on Oct. 16 and 17 will host the first ever Atlanta Parade of Apartment Homes featuring 12 properties including Alta Ridgewalk at 1 Elena Way in Woodstock. The company will donate $10 from the application fee of each new resident who signs up during the event to Susan G. Komen for the Cure Greater Atlanta Affiliate. (770) 516-5636.

29. Eat a healthier diet with more fruits and vegetables, exercise regularly and limit alcohol consumption to lower your risk of developing breast cancer.

30. Visit the Macy's department store at Town Center in Kennesaw from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday for the "Fit for the Cure" bra-fitting event. Co-Sponsored by Wacoal, the event offers free bra fittings and, for every woman who participates, Wacoal will donate $2 to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Wacoal will donate another $2 for every Wacoal bra, shape wear piece or b.tempt'd bra purchased at the event. www.wacoal-america.com.

31. Wear a pink ribbon. You can make your own with a strip or ribbon and a safety pin or purchase an enamel or sparkly one from a breast cancer organization like Susan G. Komen for the Cure at www.shopkomen.com.