In August we received a very exciting phone call from Debenhams HQ. They wanted to partner with Just Jhoom! to run Just Jhoom! demos and performances in as many stores as possible across the UK to raise money and awareness of their Think Pink Campaign.

The idea was that staff across all the stores and head office had to dance for 48 hours in October in a bid to recognise the 48,000 women affected by breast cancer each year. And Just Jhoom! was being recruited to help them do this!

Also, whilst Jhooming in the stores, Debenhams would be asking for small donations from people who were watching or taking part.

The Think Pink campaign supports three charities – Breakthrough Breast Cancer, Breast Cancer Campaign and Pink Ribbon Foundation, and according to Debenhams “this fruitful four-way partnership aims to fund world-class research and increase the understanding and awareness of how breast cancer develops. The Debenhams mission is to improve diagnosis and provide new treatments, with an overall wish to discover prevention and cure.”

To start the campaign Shalini and Beccy ran 3 Just Jhoom! Masterclasses with staff from Debenhams HQ on Friday 5 October at Pineapple Studios – and raised just over £700. One day later our performance group Va Va Jhoom performed all afternoon at the Oxford Street store. And then a week later one of our instructors (Sheila Frampton) did taster sessions at the Leeds call centre. On Friday 19 October Shalini and Instructor Lisa Lingard Jhoomed with over 30 regional managers at Southampton Debenhams.

We’ve had instructors conduct Just Jhoom! sessions at Debenhams stores in Inverness (Alex Emerson) , Ilford (Chloe Hunter and Nirzari Vyas) , Harrow and Hounslow (Rebecca Amlani and Lindsay Beale) Manchester (Sheila Frampton and Egon Mainey), Milton Keynes (Seema Bali and Julia Berg), Carmarthen (Alyson Moules), Guildford (Heidi Harris, Megan Jayawardena, Annabel Brash, Julia Jannikova, Wendy Taylor), and Torquay (Amy Robinson and Anne George).

Our Suffolk Instructor (Hayley Crawford) ran a Think Pink Just Jhoom! class and in Northumberland our Instructors (Jayne Nixon and Emma Leigh) dedicated a weeks takings from Just Jhoom! classes to Breast Cancer charities.

Thank you to all the Just Jhoom! Instructors and Jhoomers who took part in raising money and awareness of this important cause….Without you this would not have been possible!

http://blog.debenhams.com/think-pink-a-dance-with-debenhams/get-involved/charity/

http://blog.debenhams.com/just-jhoom-are-at-debenhams-stores-this-weekend/get-involved/charity/