NEWINGTON — Pink is not a color you normally associate with concrete.
But Modern Concrete owner Marcus King is out to change that. Moved by two women he knows who are battling breast cancer, King decided he wanted to support them and raise consciousness about the deadly disease.
His inspiration: Have his new 38,000-pound concrete pumper truck painted pink, with breast cancer ribbons as highlights. Stenciled on the vehicle's gas tank are the names of the women, Carole Corriveau and Nancy Foley, with the encouragement that they "Kick Ass."
"It gets people thinking about their mammogram or asking their mother or sister when their last one was," King said. "It makes people think about it more than once a year."
To send that message year-round, the 31-foot truck will remain pink throughout its expected 10- to 20-year service with the firm, King said. Modern Concrete will donate to breast cancer charities 20 cents for every yard of concrete pumped by the machine, King said.

"This is indefinite," said King's wife, Paula King, the company's director of marketing. "The pump will stay pink as long as the company owns it."
"Humbling" is how Corriveau, who lives in Bristol, described her reaction to her name on the truck. Marcus King said he did that because Corriveau's husband, who used to work in the concrete business, is a friend.
"It's an honor that they thought so highly of me to really go this far," Corriveau said. "I think what they are doing is amazing. I think about the woman driving to work who sees the truck and thinks, 'I haven't made my appointment this year.'"

Last year, Corriveau, 40, learned she had breast cancer, which had spread to the lymph nodes. The mother of two had a mastectomy, followed by months of radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Adding to her many challenges, her husband, Dean Corriveau, was away at the police academy part of that time, training as a Newington police officer.
The good news is that Corriveau is winning her battle against cancer. In November, she will return to her job as a speech and language pathologist at the Newington public schools.
The Kings were among the many friends and family who have helped her and her family through her disease, Kim Corriveau said.
"The No. 1 thing that a cancer patient doesn't want to feel is lonely," she said, struggling to control her emotions. "I don't think I've felt that this past year because of people like Marcus and Paula."
Foley, the other honoree, is a dispatcher at Tilcon Connecticut's concrete operation. The 40-year-old, also from Bristol, was diagnosed in March and is still fighting the disease.
Foley, who has a grown child, said she doesn't know the Kings personally and was surprised to find her name on the truck.
"I guess my drivers let them know about my situation," said Foley, who has continued to work during her treatment. "They showed up one day at work with the truck. I had no idea they put my name on it. I started crying."
The truck has been a hit since Marcus King picked it up at the Minnesota factory in September and drove it to Connecticut, Paula King said. People understand the significance of its color, she said.
"We get a lot of honks, a lot of thumbs up," Paula King said. "We actually get calls to the office. People say, 'We saw your truck the other day. Thank you. It really gave us some hope.'"
Schwing America, which built the pump, said that Modern Concrete's is only the third pink one they've done in recent years, director of marketing Joal McAlister said. Like the Kings, the other owners in Wisconsin and Florida also wanted to send a message about fighting breast cancer, she said.
"It's pretty rare, but there are a couple of ones we have done" McAlister said. "Construction isn't an industry where you would think they would be concerned about breast cancer. But if you think about it, everyone's got an aunt, a sister and a grandmother. It's nice to see the industry step up."