Breast Cancer Confidence Project Featured in Rochester Beacon

Rochester Beacon spotlights Breast Cancer Confidence Project’s You Are Whole Community outlet features BCCP’s survivor-centered photography book and Oct. 1 launch, elevating visibility for body-image healing during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Breast Cancer Confidence Project will debut You Are Whole on Oct. 1 at RIT’s Tate Preserve; tickets are free.

By: MMM Editorial Team

The Rochester Beacon published a feature on Sept. 23, 2025—“Finding wholeness after breast cancer” —highlighting Breast Cancer Confidence Project’s new photography book, You Are Whole, and the survivor-centered mission led by founder and CEO Michaela Raes. The piece, by Jacob Schermerhorn, frames the project as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and details the Oct. 1 launch event in Rochester.

“To see women embracing their whole selves, it gives encouragement to people who are just now going through it,” agrees Raes. “There is hope and inspiration in it because you have more chapters to write.”

The Beacon story traces BCCP’s origins to Raes’ own diagnosis at 28 and her collaboration with photographer Jolana Hollister (now BCCP’s vice president and COO), whose boudoir sessions helped Raes—and now hundreds of others—reclaim confidence and self-image after surgery and treatment.

[Related] Client Update: BCCP Book Launch Preview 

According to the Beacon, You Are Whole features 26 survivors across a nearly 40-year age range, pairing intimate portraits with recorded stories that emphasize resilience, sensuality, and renewed self-image. The article also cites data underscoring the need for this work: in New York, more than 16,700 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and one study finds 75% of survivors struggle with body-image issues.

The launch event is set for Oct. 1 at 4 p.m. at RIT’s Tate Preserve. It will include a cover unveiling, a keynote, and a roundtable discussion; organizers encourage business casual with a splash of pink. Admission is free with tickets available online.

“Scars…should be celebrated, not stigmatized. It’s a symbol of strength, not weakness,” Hollister says in the Beacon feature. Rochester Beacon

For BCCP, this earned media moment amplifies a core message: survivorship includes identity, dignity, and confidence—not just clinical outcomes. The Beacon’s coverage brings that message to citywide audiences right as Breast Cancer Awareness Month begins. Rochester Beacon

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