Thanks for a successful Pickled Pink fundraiser!
June 24, 2023
Our first Pickled Pink fundraiser tournament supporting Pink Steel breast cancer survivors was a complete success!
Thanks to the many pickleball players who competed in this tournament. Thanks too to our event sponsors, Littles Shoes and Coit Cleaning and Restoration. Thanks to the Pickleball with a Heart nonprofit group who supported the tournament logistics. Finally, thanks to the many volunteers from the Steel City Dragons Mixed Team and Pink Steel team who made it a welcoming event and kept costs to a minimum so that almost all of the proceeds could support breast cancer survivor programs.
Thanks to our community heroes!
We honored our heath care and public safety heroes at our “River of Appreciation for our Community Heroes” on June 14, 2023.
Best date night ever!
May 20, 2023
Couples from all over the Pittsburgh area joined us for a beautiful and fun sunset dragon boat cruise on the Allegheny river. Our boats and our hearts were full as we shared our love for dragon boating and our river with our wonderful guests.
We look forward to having them join us for future sessions and events.
Read news coverage of this event in Observer-Reporter article, “Date Night with a Dragon introduces locals to dragon boating” (print-ready copy here).
More opportunities for new paddlers to join the fun are coming soon!
Thanks, new paddlers!
May 6, 2023
We had a record turnout for our Try Dragon Boating event for people in the Pittsburgh area!
Thanks to all our new friends for sharing a beautiful day on the river with us. Thanks to all our volunteers too who came to help make this free event possible.
For anyone who missed it, check out the media coverage:
- Newcomers dip their paddles into dragon boat racing – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
- Learning the Sport of Dragon Boating – WTAE News
Thanks to Dr. Soran for a fascinating evening learning about lymphedema
April 13, 2023
The esteemed lymphedema expert, Dr. Atilla Soran of UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital gave a fascinating session on the latest in lymphedema prevention and treatment. The free event was hosted by our Pink Steel breast cancer survivor team as a way to share this vital information on a condition that affects millions of people who have had breast cancer and other cancers.
Thanks to everyone who joined our pre-Valentine’s day happy hour and biobanking demo!
February 9, 2023
Breast cancer patients and survivors, their friends, family, and other allies joined us to celebrate a Valentine’s Day dedicated to the essential role of biosample donors in advancing ground-breaking research!
They met Dr. Marielle Gross and her UPMC research team to see a demo of their new “de-bi” app that empowers patients to track biological samples taken during treatment.
They also heard about our Pink Steel breast cancer support dragon boat team and all our upcoming activities to support breast cancer patients before, during, and after treatment.
Thanks to our Giving Tuesday supporters!
Giving Tuesday was on November 29, 2022, and we are grateful to everyone who showed their support!
You can still support us with a donation so we can continue to offer our community programs and breast cancer survivor support.
Pittsburgh Today Live features the Steel City Dragons
See Pittsburgh Today Live (PTL) host Mikey Hood joining our Pink Steel and mixed team paddlers for fun on the Allegheny River.
Learn how fun dragon boating can be for just about anyone to try and find out how we support breast cancer survivors and community access to this amazing sport.
Email us at info@steelcitydragons.org to find out how you can try dragon boating too!
PTL is a show on KDKA-TV, the Pittsburgh CBS network affiliate.
Steel City Dragons pay tribute to 9/11
On September 11, 2021, the Steel City Dragons paid silent tribute to those who died twenty years before, and honored the many more who have sacrificed to make us all safer.
They paid tribute to all who hope – instead of hate.
“Try Dragon Boating” event on July 11 was a big success!
Thanks to everyone who came out to try dragon boating. We filled our boats and played on the river, including some exciting head-to-head real dragon boat racing.
Now, there are dozens more Pittsburghers who can now call themselves “dragon boaters”.
Watch our website for more events coming soon!
Thanks to our many Giving Tuesday supporters!
Giving Tuesday was on December 1, 2020, and we’ve received many donations from generous supporters of our community programs and breast cancer survivor support.
We are still accepting donations even if you missed Giving Tuesday. Don’t delay – donate now for a 2020 tax deduction!
Dragons in the Night fundraiser postponed
Due to guidance from the Allegheny County Health Department about large gatherings, the Dragons in the Night fundraiser scheduled for March 13, 2020 has been postponed to a later date to be determined.
Tickets will be honored on the new date or refunded on request.
Pink Steel paddlers featured
The Young Womens Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation (YWBCAF) has honored Pink Steel paddlers Katie and Alexis with a profile on their site. The two women joined us in 2018 and have become active supporters of our acclaimed breast cancer survivor program. See their story and come join us as we prepare for Pink Steel’s 2020 paddling season!
Pink Steel wins silver in Akron!
July 20, 2019
Pink Steel, the breast cancer survivor team of Steel City Dragons, finished second in a dramatic final race at the 7th Annual Dragons on the Lake Dragon Boat Festival near Akron Ohio. The team improved their placing throughout the day, qualifying as third seed. They bettered that position with a strong statement finish in second place in the final, winning the event’s silver medal. This medal is the second in as many races for the Steel City Dragons in 2019.
The Steel City Dragons mixed team also performed well, placing fifth overall among 16 teams in the community division.
More photos
New officers and board members elected
January 1, 2019
The Steel City Dragon-Boat Association, Inc. has elected the following officers and board members for 2019:
- Robert Randolph, Chairperson
- Marty Silverman, 1st Vice Chairperson
- Lynn Wegrzynek, Secretary
- Sonia Rogers, Treasurer
- Naomi Herman, Director
- Katrina Lovshin, Director
- Alexis Sebastian, Director
Pink Steel and Dragon Dream Team join for medal-winning tribute in Akron!
July 29, 2018
Pink Steel, the breast cancer survivor team of the Steel City Dragons, teamed up with paddlers from Akron Ohio’s Dragon Dream Team to win bronze at the 2018 Dragons on the Lake Dragon Boat Festival as “Pink Dream”. Pink Steel dedicated their racing to past member Barb Riesmeyer who passed away this year.
The Steel City Dragons mixed team also competed at the event, improving their times over last year’s race and preparing for three more races this season. The teams are racing next at the August 11 Chautauqua Lake Dragon Boat Race.
Pink Steel featured in Whirl Magazine
October 1, 2017
The Pink Steel breast cancer survivor team of the Steel City Dragons was featured in the October issue of Whirl magazine in an article titled, “Pink Steel City Dragons: All For One, One For All“.
Steel City Dragons win gold in Bucks County!
September 23, 2017
The Steel City Dragons won the A-division minor final in dramatic hard-fought racing to come away with gold medals in their final race of 2017 — the Bucks County Dragon Boat Festival. They then scored an impressive fifth place in the grueling 2000 meter event.
The Steel City crew was was made up of seasoned veteran paddlers, several first-year paddlers, and many Pink Steel breast cancer survivors, all racing against some of the most elite and powerful competition in the sport.
Our thanks to the Bucks County Dragon Boat Association for staging a fantastic and well-organized event for a great cause!
Organizational changes coming
September 7, 2017
The Steel City Dragon-Boat Association is saying farewell to Executive Director and Head Coach Lynne Franks-Meinert, who is stepping down after the current season. The team is grateful for the dedication and passion Lynne brought to the team. Board Chairperson Barbara Mitchell and Director Dawn Franks-Meinert will also be stepping down after this season. New coaching will be in place for next season and a plan is in place to bring in new leadership and board members. We’re looking forward to a great 2018 season for Pink Steel and the Steel City Dragons Mixed Team!
Golf fundraiser a big success!
June 7, 2015
The 9th Annual Carol Raber Memorial Golf Challenge was a big success, thanks to sold-out participation from over 100 golfers and our generous sponsors. Our heartfelt thanks go to all of the generous volunteers and sponsors who made this possible.
Steel City Dragons receives grant from UPMC
March 6, 2015
The Steel City Dragons received a generous $7500 grant from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) for outreach support, health and wellness community programming, and breast cancer survivor-specific wellness and paddling clinics.
Pink Steel honored by Allegheny County Council
February 3, 2015
The Allegheny County Council honored Pink Steel, the breast cancer survivor team of the Steel City Dragons with Proclamation 8757-15:
Proclamation congratulating Pink Steel for earning second place in the world and first place in the nation at the International Breast Cancer Paddlers’ Commission Participatory Dragon Boat Festival in Sarasota, Florida on October 24-26, 2014.
Full proclamation text – Video
Pink Steel takes silver in international event in Sarasota
October 26, 2014
Pink Steel, the breast cancer survivor team of the Steel City Dragons organization, took second place overall among 101 international teams at the 2014 IBCPC Participatory Dragon Boat Festival in Sarasota FL on October 24-26 2014. In a powerful showing, Pink Steel was the top finisher among all the U.S. teams and set the fastest time in the event during their semifinal qualifying.
Three Steel City Dragons teams champions in Cleveland
September 20,2014
The Steel City Dragons fielded three teams (Steel City Dragons Mixed, Pink Steel, and Women of Steel) at the Eigth Annual Cleveland Dragon Boat Festival. All three teams won their divisions. The Mixed team had the fastest times in the first and third qualifying rounds and emerged as the top seed in the mixed championship final. They pulled out all the stops in the final, finishing with the fastest time of the day – a 1:59 for the 500-meter course. Pink Steel consistently had the fastest times in the breast cancer survivor division and won their championship final by a staggering margin of over six seconds. The Women of Steel showed their power, not only winning their division, but also posting times that were faster than all but three of the mixed teams. For their efforts, the teams brought home two trophies topped with beautifully handcrafted models of championship dragon boats.
Pink Steel champions in Akron
July 12,2014
Pink Steel, the breast cancer survivor team of the the Steel City Dragons won the Survivor division at the Dragons on the Lake Dragon Boat Festival at Portage Lakes State Park near Akron Ohio on July 12. This was their second gold medal a row at Akron, since winning the inaugural race in 2013. The Steel City Dragons Mixed Team won all three of their races and finished a strong fourth overall.
Steel City Dragons in the news
- Date Night with a Dragon introduces locals to dragon boating – 5/27/2023, Observer-Reporter (print-ready copy here).
- How To Get Involved With Pink Steel Breast Cancer Survivor Team
- Fox Chapel dragon boat team claims title as best in nation
- Pine woman’s dragon boat team races to 2nd in national event
- Races over, the hope continues
- Pink flower shower ends ‘global’ fest in Sarasota
- Congratulations to Pink Steel (Katherine Amenta of WPXI)
- Pink Steel Dragon Boat Team Takes Second in International Competition
- Boating Team Bonds Survivors
- Cheers for two Pink Steel Paddlers
- Dragon Dream Team competes in international competition
- Dragon boat team celebrates victory
- Dragon boating is the ultimate team sport