Dedicate your hair follicles to the cause – grow a mustache, promise to shave your coveted beard, cut the luscious locks or come up with your own growing gamble.
Two new and highly successful DDBCF fundraising events were established in 2016:
a) The Inaugural Frank A. Cosimano Memorial Golf Classic presented by: Bergen Risk Managers and
b) Shave the Date presented by: Swing Graphics
The incredibly generous team from Informed Mortgage’s planned giving initiative set an all-time DDBCF record for Giving with an astounding $24,375.00 donated in the year 2016!
DDBCF welcomed 2 returning members back to the Board of Directors; Carmen Malatino and Kelly Powers; while three new Board Members Jason Cosimano, Steve Crisalli and former Director of Patient Advocacy Bill Raney were invited to serve as well. Office space for the Foundation was secured at 364 North Main Street, Suite 10D in Manahawkin, NJ.
Director of Patient Advocacy; Lauren M. Raney (7/28/1977-12/16/2016) was appointed by the Board of Directors as our Inaugural Trustee Emeritus.
2011 – 2016: 763 Families battling a cancer diagnosis have received $621,813.06 in Financial Grants!
All of us at David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation want to thank our patients and their families for inspiring us each and every day. It was an extremely difficult end to 2016 with the passing of so many loved ones and friends of DDBCF including: Mallory, Anthony, Virginia, Melissa, Michael, Phyllis, Layard, Alice, Patricia and Lauren. Our thoughts, prayers and love remain with all of these families. In the midst of her own battle with cancer, Lauren Raney proudly served as an original member of our Directors of Patient Advocacy Board in hopes that she could offer support to other patients battling this deadly disease. What Lauren may not have realized before her passing on December 16th is that she not only offered our current patients support and hope but lifted the spirits of any and every person that was blessed to have crossed paths with her.. On December 20th 2016, the DDBCF Board of Directors unanimously voted to appoint Lauren M. Raney as our first ever Trustee Emeritus. Lauren will be forever honored for her service as a Director of Patient Advocacy while all of us trust that she will eternally watch over and guide us on this journey.
Thank you to our Executive Partners at Informed Mortgage. Informed Mortgage’s planned giving initiative has set a high standard for charitable giving thanks to the efforts of Stephen, Christopher, Michael, Informed Mortgage Staff and all their customers.
Thank you to the parents and kids from our youth group, Generation Dream. This motivated, talented and compassionate group of kids are determined to make a positive impact in the lives of our patients and their families.
Thank you to students from our Southern Regional High School group led by teachers Ms. Rebecca Posch and Mrs Jody McLennan.
Thank you to our community partners, Dawn and Pete from Swing Graphics and Ryan Johnson from Ryan Johnson Photography for their help with photo, images and multiple revisions to content.
A special thank you to our Board of Directors (Steve Crisalli, Dani Corso, Kristin Panzone, Bill Raney, Kelly Powers, Jason Cosimano, Tim Hall) who serve the mission of the Foundation on a 100% volunteer basis!
Please take a minute to look back on 2016 with us in the attached summary of accomplishments. Please know that if you attended one of our events, donated an auction item, sponsored an event, volunteered or made an individual donation – YOU are responsible for providing HOPE to a family diagnosed with cancer that desperately needs our help. THANK YOU! Our Mantra for 2017 is: #WeWill
Far too many men ignore signs of poor health and refuse to take action. By means of spreading awareness, we are making moves and we need your help. This Movember, we are asking men of all ages to grow a mo to help raise awareness & provide HOPE for male patients battling a cancer diagnosis. If growing a mo isn’t your forte, beards & manes are eligible too. Ladies are welcome and encouraged to get involved by collecting pledges and trimming their tresses.
In recognition of this underlying problem, Swing Graphics and David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation have partnered to create “Shave The Date,” a one-time pop up barbershop at East in Surf City, New Jersey. On November 1, men & women are asked to document current hairstyles on their social media channels with #IShavedTheDate. Over the next month, they will grow out their hair while collecting pledges in support of their commitment for a No Shave November. On November 25, 2016, East will open its doors from 4-9pm to welcome participants to receive a shave or haircut from Ryan’s Barber Shop & Shave Parlor with pledges of $50 or more. If you are unable to participate in the No Shave aspect of this event, but would like to take advantage of our popup barbershop, you are invited to make a donation of $25 for a shave or cut & $35 for a combo. If you are unable to attend the popup barbershop at East but would still like to participate in the fundraising, we welcome you to get involved – simply download our pledge sheets below & visit your favorite barber to get the job done. Through David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation, all proceeds from Shave The Date will be directed to male patients battling a cancer diagnosis in need of financial assistance.
“We are currently in a men’s health crisis. Men are 25% more likely to be diagnosed with cancer than women. When learning this, I had to ask myself, ‘What do I know about men’s health?’ I could barely even answer that question. I suddenly realized that awareness must be THE first step,” said Dawn Simon from Swing Graphics who has organized this event with the help of business partner Pete Sullivan.
David’s Dream and Believe Cancer Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that raises funds to provide financial assistance, services and HOPE to families affected by a cancer diagnosis. Since 2011, DDBCF has supported 650 Families battling a cancer diagnosis with over $500,000 in grant donations and is currently on pace to offer financial & emotional support to one patient/family per day.
David Caldarella says, “As a stage IV head and neck cancer survivor and Co-Founder of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation, it’s imperative we join together to raise awareness for men’s health. 1 in 2 men will be diagnosed with cancer this year and that number is set to double in 2050 according to the National Cancer Institute. Dawn Simon & Peter Sullivan from Swing Graphics have created a Movember Fundraiser in partnership with DDBCF called, ‘Shave the Date’ to not only raise awareness for men’s health in particular with cancer but also to raise funds for local men battling a cancer diagnosis. Please join with us as ‘A Beacon of Hope’ this Movember.”
The official website for Shave the Date can be found by clicking here: Shave the Date!
To make a donation to a Shave the Date Ambassador – please click here: Pledge Now!
The Law Office of William Wright presents: Survival of the Mills
Not surprisingly, the weather was absolutely horrendous for Survival of the Mills yesterday and was probably the worst weather for an event in DDBCF history including our Inaugural Frank V. Panzone Jr. Memorial Cruisin for a Cure back in 2013. Horrendous weather for a DDBCF event is “Kind of the Norm” but this event takes place entirely outside with athletes competing and volunteers in this weather for the better part of 3-8 hours. Temps never got above 55 degrees, winds were steady at 20mph with gusts hitting 30mph and steady to soaking downpours the entire day.
However, and this is a big HOWEVER, that did not stop over 100 athletes from competing and did not stop almost 30 volunteers from volunteering all day in that horrendous weather to benefit families battling a cancer diagnosis!!!
A HUGE thank you to Race Director Ross Reynolds from Trident Multisport and Southern Regional Middle School for creating, managing and directing a fantastic event in extremely difficult conditions. Thank you to Ross’s wife Marissa for her continued support and event day management. This event would not be possible without the combined support from Ross and Marissa Reynolds.
Thank you to Rebecca Posch who is a teacher at Southern Regional High School and one of the moderator’s for our David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation student group at SRHS. Rebecca volunteered all day along with approx. 25 students from our SRHS group. This was not an easy task by any stretch of the imagination so thank you very much.
Thank you to our Presenting Sponsor: The Law Office of William Wright. It was a family affair at Survival of the Mills for the Wright family. Bill finished first in his age group for the triathlon, his dad Dave finished second in his age group for the duathlon and Bill’s uncle Joe finished first in his age group for the duathlon. Bill and his staff at The Law Office of William Wright are the newest members of our Community Partner level of sponsorship. This level is reserved for businesses committed to the mission of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation with combined efforts of: financial sponsorship, raising awareness and volunteerism in excess of $10,000.00.
We want to thank all the sponsors for Survival of the Mills including our financial and food sponsorships. Thank you to Donna Carlson for all her support securing food donations, transporting them to and from and setting up our race-day food and beverage. Thank you to Pete and Dawn from Swing Graphics for creating all the graphic design for the event. Thank you to Ken Sullivan from Shore Promotions for our event shirt.
A special thanks to the 100 athletes that not only endured a challenging 5-stage triathlon, 5-stage duathlon or 5K course but extremely difficult and horrendous weather conditions. The tag line for this event is: You never know how Strong you are until being Strong is the Only choice You have. Our patients and their families battling a cancer diagnosis don’t have a choice in their battle against a cancer.
THANK YOU to everybody involved in Survival of the Mills including: race director, volunteers, athletes and sponsors who woke up and decided to make a difference in the life of a family battling a cancer diagnosis.
Survival of the Mills presented by: The Law Office of William Wright
Sunday October 9th at Wells Mills County Park
Please join us for the 4th Annual Survival of the Millson Sunday October 9, 2016 at Wells Mills County Park. Thank you to our friend Bill Wright and his staff at The Law Office of William Wright for their Presenting Sponsorship for Survival of the Mills. Our friend Ross Reynolds from Trident Multisport is the race creator/organizer/director. Thank you to Ross’s wife Marissa for all her support!
We welcome The Law Office of William Wright and Trident Multisport as the newest members to our Community Partner Sponsorship Level. Our community partner level is set at $10,000.00. This is reserved for businesses, organizations and individuals that donate, sponsor, volunteer, raise awareness and participate in the mission of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation to offer financial assistance, services and hope to families battling a cancer diagnosis.
Register for the 5K, Triathlon or Duathlon by clicking on this link: https://runsignup.com/Race/NJ/Waretown/SurvivaloftheMills
Our student group from Southern Regional High School will be volunteering at various locations throughout the race. We want to thank our friends Dawn and Pete at Swing Graphics for all the Graphic Design for the event and our friend Ken Sullivan at Shore Promotions for the event shirt! Please join us for a fun and challenging 5K, Triahtlon or Duathlon at Wells Mills County Park on Sunday October 9th to benefit:
We held our 4th Annual Island Gala “Hope Under the Stars”on Friday August 5th at the Sea Shell Resort & Beach Club. It was a beautiful night filled with HOPE Under the Stars!
The most critical information about David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation (DDBCF) was conveyed to the crowd by Co-Founder, David Caldarella during the opening ceremony. 634 Families battling cancer have been supported by DDBCF over the past 5.5 years. 312 families in the first 4 years of existence and 322 in the past 1.5 years. A group of friends set out to assist 1-2 patients affected by a cancer diagnosis per year. DDBCF is currently on pace to offer solely financial assistance to a patient/family every 1.46 days in 2016 and if you add in the emotional support and hope – that number rapidly drops to 1 patient/family per day! Truly an incredible milestone for the DDBCF Family and the supporters that make this “Generosity of Spirit” possible throughout the year! THANK YOU!
The highlight of the evening was hearing from Co-Founder of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation (DDBCF); Tim Hall, Co-Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital; Dr. David Cognetti and 3 of the new Directors Patient of Advocacy for David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation: Dawn Aversa, Susie Buzby and Tina Angers. Tim spoke about the origin of DDBCF and in particular a story of Hope when his friend of 40 years David Caldarella was at his darkest point during his battle with stage IV head and neck cancer and one of his best friends Carmen Malatino created a CD of recorded voicemail’s from family, friends and Dr. David Cognetti encouraging David to Dream & Believe. Dr. Cognetti talked about his personal relationship with his patient David Caldarella and his recollection of the early stages of DDBCF all the way through today. Dawn, Susie and Tina spoke about their personal experiences with cancer as a caregiver in Dawn’s case and survivor’s in Susie and Tina’s and the positive impact DDBCF has had in their lives.
We want to start by thanking our partner and Platinum sponsors for the 4th Annual Island Gala: Informed Mortgage. Everybody in attendance heard David explain the planned giving initiative created by Informed Mortgage in collaboration with Dani Corso from Volatile Media Management and Communications Director for DDBCF. Informed Mortgage donates $25.00 per every closed loan out of their Manahawkin office to DDBCF. This partnership has resulted in planned giving donations of $27,500.00 to DDBCF from the Informed Mortgage team in Manahawkin, NJ. Please give them a call today for any of your mortgage or refi needs especially with all-time low interest rates!
Thank you to the Reynolds Family and Reynolds Garden Shop, Nursery, Floral Market and Landscaping for their continued support of DDBCF and their Gold Sponsorship of the 4th Annual Island Gala. The absolutely breathtaking “VIP” floral arrangements and stunning landscapes surrounding the “Hope Tiki Garden” were simply Amazing!
A special thank you to Tom Hughes, Jaimee Boyle and Brittany Solon from the Sea Shell Resort & Beach Club. This incredible family and their staff continue to care for this event as if it were an event for a family member and we cannot thank them enough.
The artwork and graphics for the event including flyers, posters and invites were all beautifully done by Dawn and Peter from Swing Graphics. We want to thank Typestries and Copyrite for all of our printing needs. Thank you to LeAnna Gerety from LeAnna Theresa Photography and Tony Coon from Darn Swell Media for the photography and video.
Our Board of Directors and volunteers are second to none and this event puts their selfless giving for our families battling cancer on center stage. Their generosity of spirit for the families of DDBCF battling a cancer diagnosis goes far beyond, “Paying it Forward” and for that we love them!
Thank you to our guests and sponsors. You are “Vehicles of Hope” to so many!
Platinum Sponsors:
Informed Mortgage & Bill & Kirsten Jordan
Gold Sponsors:
Reynolds Landscaping, D. Finelli Construction & Southern Ocean Medical Center
Silver Sponsors:
Thomas V. Massa DMD & Associates, Paul Jr. Designs, Ocean First Bank/Ocean First Foundation & Dan & Karen Raugh
Bronze Sponsors:
Panzone’s Pizza, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Lou’s Electric, Anderson Insurance Agency, G. Anderson Agency, Walt McCollum Plumbing, Heating & Cooling, SOMC Foundation, The Van Dyk Group, Lumby Family, Bruce & Beth Fisher, Invisalign, Perry & Barbara Kaplan, Phillip & Christine Kaputa, John & Dee Vanderslice, Brandon Systems, Zelus Consulting Group & Rue Insurance.
Mark your calendars now for the 5th Annual Island Gala on Friday August 4th 2017!
Our 2nd Annual Survival of the Mills on Sunday October 11, 2015 brought together athletes, volunteers and sponsors for a “One of a Kind” race to benefit David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation.
We want to thank our friend & Race Director Ross Reynolds from Trident Multisport for another amazing race. Ross puts in a yeoman effort prior to the event and the athlete’s can visibly see the attention to detail on race day. Ross knows that perspective very well being a multisport athlete himself (very good one at that) and he takes pride in creating a well-run event for fellow athletes!
Thank you to all the amazing volunteers and there were plenty of you for the 2nd Annual Survival of the Mills. A special thanks to Ross’s wife Marissa for managing registration in 36’ degree temps early on race day and managing the various aspects of the after party and awards ceremony. Thank you to Tommy Craig for working on course set-up with Ross Reynolds and overall management of race logistics. Thank you to Cathy Deely for working our race packet pickup on Saturday and road detail on race day. Thank you to DDBCF Board of Director members Kim Manzella and Dani Corso for working packet pickup, water stations, transition area and road detail. Our Board of Director members serve on a 100% volunteer basis in order to direct the largest percentage of funds back to our families battling a cancer diagnosis.
We want to acknowledge the presence of two youth groups at our 2nd Annual Survival of the Mills. The youth group for DDBCF called Generation Dream manned the water stations and swim transition area. Kai Manzella from Generation Dream even spent his birthday with us volunteering during the race. Our newest partner is our DDBCF student group from Southern Regional High School. Ms. Rebecca Posch led a contingent of 16 students helping out all day with various tasks. Awesome Job to both of these amazing youth groups! A special thank you to Mikaela McGovern for singing a beautiful rendition of the Star Spangled Banner.
We want to thank our sponsors who make a conscious decision to support the Foundation throughout the year understanding that their efforts have a direct impact on the lives of families affected by a cancer diagnosis. Ocean Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine, Informed Mortgage, Thomas V. Mass DMD and Associates, Volatile Media Management, Panzone’s Pizza, Swing Graphics, Barlow Buick GMC, Thompson Healthcare & Sports Medicine, Fusaro’s Pizza, Shore Promotions, LBI PBA #175, Ocean County Sheriff, Waretown First Aid Department, Walt McCollum Plumbing Heating & Cooling, The Arlington, DQ Events, Road ID, Ocean County Parks & Recreation, Joseph A. Citta Scout Reservation and Wells Mills County Park.
A special thanks to our athletes who braved some “brisk” early morning temperatures but certainly understood the greater meaning behind this race and inspired us all with their efforts!
The end result of a successful race is that our patients will be the ultimate winners thanks to the efforts of so many today! Thank you from all of us at David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation and see you next year!
“You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have!”
