ARLINGTON — Every October, in honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Michelle Crawford and her friends swing by the Cascade Valley Hospital for the first leg of a “Mammograms and Margaritas” night.

This year, that night coincided with the hospital’s first “Pink Night Out” Oct. 21, which offered not only sales of baked goods and jewelry and handmade Seahawks-themed Christmas ornaments, but also opportunities to learn more about women’s health and breast cancer prevention.

Jacqueline Johnson, director of imaging for the hospital, guided women through a model of how to check for lumps on their own breasts, while also scheduling them for mammograms.

Meanwhile, vendors will donate 10 percent of their sales from the evening to the Cascade Valley Hospital Foundation, which has used those proceeds to provide a portable mammogram van on-site to the Arlington Relay For Life for two years.

“We hope to continue that in the years to come,” said Jennifer Egger, community relations coordinator for the hospital. “During those mammograms, we found several women who had issues that needed to be followed up on, for which they received treatment. About one in every eight women have findings from their mammograms that require follow-ups. Early detection saves lives.”

Although a number of health care professionals have recently begun saying that women can wait until 45 to begin mammograms, Egger still recommended checking with one’s doctor as early as 40.

“It depends on your family history and your personal history, which is why everyone should talk to their doctor before making a decision on this,” Egger said.

Egger touted Cascade Valley’s mammography services, including staff member Donna Marler, whom Egger claims has “a fan club” in the community.

“She’s so good at what she does that patients ask for her by name,” Egger said.

Egger also encouraged other women to follow Crawford’s example, by turning mammograms into a celebratory event.

“It’s the same reason we created the Pink Night Out,” Egger said. “If you create a support system, you can turn something that’s potentially not super-comfortable into a less intimidating thing.”

Crawford, her friends and all those who received mammograms that night also received fluffy pink bathrobes,

Egger reminded the community that the “Taking Steps to Beat Breast Cancer” walk will take place Oct. 31. For details, visit www.takingstepstobeatbreastcancer.com.