B*CURED, a non-profit Greenwich-based organization founded in 2008 to end brain cancer, hosted itโs 10thannual fundraiser, The B*CURED Ball, at Chelsea Piers in Stamford,ย to commemorate 10 years, B*CUREDโs fundraiser was held on the turf field at Chelsea Piers, giving guests access to the batting cages, trampoline, ping pong and pop-o-shot, among other activities. ย This yearโs event, hosted by B*CUREDโs Co-Presidents Karena Bailey and Kristin Duda and Event Co-Chairs Kelly Buchalter, Julie Church, Ashley Fox, Julie Karish and Courtney Wilson, also featured DJ April Larken, an incredible silent auction, catering by Nikki Glekas Events, a wine toss and a heartfelt video about B*CURED and itโs progress.ย The event raised over $200k and will enable the charity to fund an additional three to four brain cancer research grants.
B*CURED Co-President Kristin Duda said, โB*CURED is very personal to all of us who have been part of B*CURED the past 10 years as well as the community that supports us.ย I lost my Mom to brain cancer when I was 16 and many of us have lost a parent as well as close friends in the prime of their lives to this devastating disease.ย Being part of B*CURED has allowed us to see firsthand that change is possible.โย Karena Bailey, the other B*CURED Co-President, commented, โSadly,ย brain cancer related deaths surpassed leukemia as theย number one killer of children and adolescentsโa stark reminder that we must re-double our efforts to find new and more effectiveย treatments. B*CURED has a grant program that is funding innovative research, like the well known immunotherapy treatments, but also blood tests to detect if brain cancer will someday affect a person, and even various out of the box treatments for children and adolescents. We are relentless in our mission to find a cure.โ
To date, B*CURED has allocated close toย $2ย millionย acrossย 27 research grantsย atย topย universities and hospitalsย including Memorial Sloan-Kettering, Yale, Columbia, Mass General and Cleveland Clinic, among others. Fromย James Purznerโs incredible work at Stanfordย University toย Justin Lathiaโs change-making studies at Cleveland Clinic, B*CURED’s grants are giving our brightest minds the resources theyย desperately need toย level the playing field.ย B*CURED is an all-volunteer organization and has ongoing athletic and fundraising events throughout the year.
Photographs by Cheryl Moss