This event gives families battling a cancer diagnosis the opportunity to enjoy a summer tradition on the Seaside Heights Boardwalk including: Rides, Food, Games and Parking.
Please register your immediate family only (5 person max)
RSVP by Wednesday August 9, 2017. Leave your name, phone, email, mailing address, and number of adults and children. Parking passes will be mailed to families in advance of Boardwalk Dream Day.
Please contact David Caldarella: david@davidsdreamandbelieve.org, 609-489-0011.
You might recognize her as the sweet woman who greets you getting your morning coffee at the Wawa on Route 72 and Mermaid in Manahawkin or as she wishes you a good day after paying for that coffee. You won’t see a picture of her here because she’s not looking for any accolades. She will only know about this post because of her daughter and granddaughter. What you don’t see or know is that 70 years young Marie is battling cancer for the second time right now. She’s doing it with a smile on her face and gratitude for each new day. That’s not enough for her so Marie took it upon herself to sign up for planned giving with a $10 bi-weekly pledge to a Foundation that means so much to her. She read about Informed Mortgage’s planned giving initiative with DDBCF. Marie puts aside her own struggles physically, emotionally and financially to “Pay it Forward” for others battling this deadly disease. Marie is the HERO of not only today’s Tuesday Testimonial but also the embodiment of the love, generosity of spirit and HOPE that is David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation.
Martin Luther King Jr. asked the question, “what are you doing for others?” Marie Antonelli has an answer for that question today and every day! Do you?
We want to thank our friends at Informed Mortgage for their continued support of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation and our mission to offer financial assistance, services and HOPE to families battling a cancer diagnosis. This creative planned giving initiative was forged by our Communications Director Dani Corso through her company Volatile Media Management.The Informed Mortgage Leadership Team, Staff and their clients are responsible for positively affecting the lives of so many families battling cancer. The result has been a record-setting and monumental donation of $42,375.00to DDBCF over the past two years! These donations are used towards a multitude of items for our families including: mortgage/rent, utilities, transportation costs to and from treatments, medical bills and groceries to keep food on the table!
All of us at David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation appreciate and truly value the year-long efforts of the entire Informed Mortgage team and could not be happier to be partnering with them again in 2017! The Informed Mortgage Team has set the Gold Standard for creative planned giving initiatives but you can join Informed Mortgage as A Beacon Of Hope for our families battling a cancer diagnosis by contacting us today to learn more about Planned Giving and David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation! Please contact David Caldarella at: david@davidsdreamandbelieve.org
Please contact our friends at Informed Mortgage NJ for all your Mortgage needs by calling them today at: (609) 597-0007.
The 6th Annual Stafford Run for Hope presented by D Finelli Construction and Lou’s Electric to benefit David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation took place on Saturday June 17th. We had 227 athletes converge on Manahawkin Lake Park early Saturday morning under overcast skies and temps around 80’. Race Director Ross Reynolds created this event 6 years ago. Ross reached out to his friend and former Ship Bottom Lifeguard teammate, David Caldarella a couple years ago to see if the two could partner on this event to benefit local families battling a cancer diagnosis. Ross and his wife Marissa do an amazing job every year with the event and Survival of the Mills which will take place on a new date this year, Sunday September 24, 2017. Thank you, Ross and Marissa.
Thank you to our Presenting Sponsors, Lou’s Electric and D Finelli Construction. Lou Manganiello from Lou’s Electric and Dave Finelli from D Finelli Construction and their teams support our mission of HOPE for families battling a cancer diagnosis throughout the year. The two companies were recognized earlier this year as our newest community partners. Thank you to Lou, Dave and your teams.
A huge thank you to our new friends at Manafirkin Brewing Company for hosting our after-party and award ceremony for the 6th Annual Stafford Run for Hope. If you have not been to Manafirkin yet – do yourself a favor and get there! Thank you to Bagels & Beyond and Fusaro’s Pizza & Pasta for donating all the food for this year’s event.
Thank you to our amazing volunteers. We say it time and time again but we really do have the best volunteers in the world. It takes a tremendous number of volunteers to staff an event like the 6th Annual Stafford Run for Hope. Thank you for giving of your time to “Pay it Forward” for others.
We have amazing volunteers but we would not have an event without our athletes. 227 athletes were ready to swim, bike and/or run to test their own physical endurance Saturday morning while understanding that many in our community are fighting for their lives every single day. We recognize our athletes “fight” and appreciate their support!
We want to thank our youth group Generation Dream families and kids for fundraising and supporting this event. We also had several of our Generation Dream families volunteering along the race route at various water stations. A special thanks to Kim Manzella and Steve Crisalli.
Thank you to our graphic artists and friends at Swing Graphics for all the design and marketing materials for this event. Dawn and Pete are also responsible for our newest event in 2016, Shave the Date which will take place on Friday November 24, 2017. Thank you to our friends and community partners at Jetty for printing this year’s event shirts and a special thanks to Brad Bargiel for always working under stressful time constraints but always delivering for the Dream Team. Thank you to Charlie Kulp from Shore Brake Cyclery for all your support on this event and throughout the year.
Thank you to DQ Events, Surf City Lifeguards, LBI TriClub, Stafford Township Recreation Department and Ocean County Parks & Recreation.
The beautiful Sea Shell Resort & Beach Club is once again the venue for this year’s Gala. The Hughes Family and staff go above and beyond each year. Please understand that the first weekend in August is the PEAK of the summer tourism season on Long Beach Island but that does not stop the Hughes Family from hosting this event year after year. We appreciate their unwavering support but most of all we are grateful for their friendship.
Our event this year is presented by our friends at Informed Mortgage. The Informed Mortgage Leadership Team, Staff and their clients are responsible for positively affecting the lives of so many families battling cancer. They have set the Gold standard for charitable donations through a creative planned giving initiative and the result has been a record-setting donation of $50,275.00to DDBCF over the past 2.5 years! Please call the Informed Mortgage team for all your mortgage and refi needs. 609-597-0007.
We are also grateful to have the support from our friends, the Reynolds Family and their team at Reynolds Landscaping, Garden Shop & Floral Market in Manahawkin. The Reynolds Family support our events and numerous other wonderful causes throughout the year but they have a special place in their heart for our Island Gala. The decorations and floral arrangements will once again be donated by Reynolds. Please contact Reynolds for all your landscaping needs. 609-597-6099.
Our entertainment lineup is set for the 5th Annual Island Gala with some familiar faces. We met American Idol Alum Cara Samantha a few years ago because of her cousin Jamie’s cancer diagnosis. Unfortunately, Jamie eventually lost her courageous battle with cancer. Cara will be performing during cocktail hour and under the stars in our outside “Hope Lounge.” A brief opening ceremony will take place with a “Surprise Performance.” Then everybody should get ready to dance the night away to Philadelphia’s High-Energy Seven Piece Band Love 77. The members of LOVE 77 are motivated by the mission of the Foundation and ready to bring the house down with some incredible Live Music!
Please join us on Friday August 4, 2017 at the Sea Shell Resort & Beach Club. Individual tickets: for $250.00pp. Event will take place from 7pm-midnight. Live Music, Hors D’Oeurves, Buffet, Auction and 3 Hour Top Shelf Open Bar. (Cocktail Attire)
Invites are being mailed to last year’s guests and the easiest way to secure your ticket for the 5th Annual Island Gala is to reserve your sponsorship today. You can do so by visiting the shop tab on our website or downloading a form below. Please make checks payable to DDBCF, 364 North Main Street, Suite 10D, Manahawkin, NJ 08050. Thank you!
5th Annual Island GalaSponsorship Proposal Page 1Sponsorship Proposal Page 2
We want to thank the entire Panzone Family for their friendship, service and support for David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation, this event and our mission of mission of HOPE for families affected by a cancer diagnosis throughout the year! We renamed this event in 2013 to honor Frank’s commitment to his family, community and desire to help families battling cancer. As a Foundation, we are proud to have this event in Frank’s honor and so grateful to have his family by our side. A special thanks to Kristin and Jillian for all their support behind the scenes on this event.
Thank you to our Presenting Sponsor for the second year in a row: Barlow Buick GMC of Manahawkin. We are blessed with positive partnerships within the business community and we are so grateful to have the Barlow Family in our corner. We increased our sponsor total from a year ago by another 13 businesses bringing this year’s total to 62 sponsors. We cannot thank you enough for supporting our mission and serving as A Beacon of Hope with DDBCF.
We want to thank our local businesses who donated their time and amazing food to our event including: Panzone’s Pizza, Sunny Rae’s Kitchen and Manhattan Bagel of Manahawkin. Our delicious cake was donated by our friends at Moester’s Bakery! A huge thank you to Danielle and staff at our host venue for the 4th year in a row, Joe Pop’s Shore Bar & Restaurant. Danielle and the staff go above and beyond every single year and did so once again this year. We are grateful that Live Music was once again provided by local musicians including Southern Regional High School students; Wet Metal Band and our hometown favorites who have played every single year of this event for 5 years: Jason Booth and Ted Hammock. Thank you to our friends from Party Crashers Gaming Trailer and Sprinkles the Clown who both donated their business and personal time.
A special shout-out to Officer Kevin Snow and Chief Robert Burnaford from the Harvey Cedars Police Dept. and all the Police Dept.’s that lined up to support our ride this year! Thank you to our motorcycle and classic car friends for your continued support of this event.
Our Board of Directors, Auction Donors, Committee Members and Volunteers are second to none. Support comes in so many different forms besides financial and each one of them plays a vital role in the support for our families battling a cancer diagnosis. The entire list of thank you’s are featured in the image below from our Director Kristin Panzone.
Thank you to the men, women and families that continually support our events. Your generosity of spirit knows no boundaries and we love you for it!
Here are some of Ryan Johnson’s amazing images from our 5th Annual but click here to see more.
Panzone’s Pizza & Panzone’s Pizza & Pasta of Long Beach Island, NJ.
It’s time to recognize our friends, the Panzone family. The Panzone Family, Panzone’s Pizza in Surf City, NJ and Panzone’s Pizza & Pasta in Beach Haven, NJ have been supporters of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation since day one. Our first DDBCF fundraiser was a pizza party in December 2010 and the Panzone Family donated all the food. Frank Panzone’s indomitable spirit during his battle with esophageal cancer, commitment to his community and dedication to the families of David’s Dream & Believe are the basis for renaming our Cruisin for a Cure to the Frank V. Panzone Jr. Memorial Cruisin for a Cure in 2013. We’re proud to have Kristin Panzone Moritz currently serving on our Board of Directors, Jillian served on the BOD for two years and continues to play an active role with the Foundation. We are so grateful to have the support of this amazing family behind us every step of the way!
My name is Savanna Tate. I live in Utah with my husband and high school sweetheart Steve. We have 6 beautiful children, 3 of which are triplets and one that is our warrior angel, Hayes. Having gone through childhood cancer with my sweet baby, I hope to shed light on childhood cancer with my new-found passion, the HayesTough Foundation.
The Hidden Warriors of Cancer by: Savanna Tate
The question I get asked often is, “What about your other kids? How did they do through treatment and you being gone?” Siblings of children with cancer are the forgotten heroes of the disease. Starting in January of 2016 all the way through November, my kids were without a mom for almost 150 days due to overnight hospital stays with Hayes. And on top of that, when both of their parents were around, the kids had to see constant worry on our faces and often times, tears from the supposed “rocks” of the family. I could see that they often felt like they had to be strong for us. What a frightening journey for them.
Sometimes in the quiet times at night, one of my children would open up to me or my husband about the fear they were facing. They didn’t like seeing us sad, but more than anything, seeing us worried, scared them more than anything. They had an overwhelming fear of losing their baby brother and when they saw our own fear for the same thing, they felt like their fears were validated.
At the beginning of our journey, I remember Hayes had been in surgery to remove the tumor. The surgery was a success but the doctors had discovered tumors on his spine. We decided the kids didn’t need to know about his spine. “Why worry them unnecessarily?” we rhetorically asked each other. We wanted them to feel the relief of finding out Hayes no longer had a tumor in his brain. What we didn’t expect was that when our 10-year-old was at school, classmates that had heard the news from their parents, broke the news about the spinal tumors to Bo. He came home from school devastated and scared.
From that point on, my husband and I approached the cancer situation, being honest. We told our kids the truth. We focused on the facts that the doctors were doing everything they could. When they asked the hard questions, we answered truthfully. We realized that our children know more than we give them credit for. But, what they needed from us was reassurance that everything was going to be ok. That we were a family and no matter what, we were always going to be a family.
I realized at this time that there are two distinctly different ways to react. The pretending like everything was great, and the being just ok. I feel like from the beginning of this journey, our whole family has been “just ok”. It has been a miracle because we have been able to show our children that emotions of sadness and anger are normal and fine, but that regardless of what we feel and face, we will be ok. We will be ok and the fact that I know that is another miracle. I think there is something empowering about letting your kids realize that their emotions are all a part of the journey.
My biggest piece of advice for other parents facing hard things is to let your kids know that no matter what, life will go on and you will be ok. Show them your strength but show them your vulnerability. It is ok to say you are scared and sad, but let them know you are still their rock through the tears. Nothing can shake that, not even the monster, cancer. www.tatepartyof8.blog
David’s Dream and Believe Cancer Foundation – Manahawkin, NJ
DESCRIPTION: David’s Dream and Believe Cancer Foundation exists as a Beacon of Hope to families affected by a cancer diagnosis. We provide financial assistance and wellness services that help patients and their families deal with the complex challenges of a cancer diagnosis. We are looking for a seasoned Grant Writer to partner with us in pursuit of funding that will advance our mission and enable us to meet the increasing demand for our services. The Grant Writer will focus efforts on research of and proposal writing for grants available through public, private and corporate funding sources.
Major Responsibilities:
Responsible for conducting the full range of activities required to prepare, submit, and manage grant proposals to foundation and corporate sources.
Perform prospect research on foundations and corporations to evaluate prospects for corporate and foundation grants.
Work with Treasurer and Accountant to gather information necessary to report to corporate/foundation funders on current grant programs.
Comply with all grant reporting as required by foundation/corporate donors.
Provide stewardship to current donors to provide regular updates to corporate and foundation donors.
Make appointments for Executive Director with foundation officers and other prospects.
Maintain current records in database and in paper files, including grant tracking and reporting.
Assist with other fundraising projects as requested
Knowledge and Skills:
Strong written communication skills; ability to write clear, structured, articulate, and persuasive proposals.
Strong editing skills.
Attention to detail.
Ability to meet deadlines.
Knowledge of fundraising information sources.
Experience with proposal writing and institutional donors.
Knowledge of basic fundraising techniques and strategies.
Knowledge and familiarity with research techniques for fundraising prospect research.
Strong contributor in team environments
Qualifications:
Minimum of three years’ experience with grant writing.
Previous experience with non-profit fundraising.
Experience working in deadline-driven environments.
Able to work well in a team environment, handle multiple assignments and meet deadlines.
Able to monitor and meet income goals.
Please email resume and expression of interest to tim@davidsdreamandbelieve.org
Earlier this week, I received one of those “out-of-the-blue” RANDOM calls from a dear friend. He wanted to know if I could sing for an upcoming funeral Mass at his local church (if you know me, you are aware that I’m a singer/hobbyist for weddings, funerals, town events, etc.).
Knowing that I work full-time, my friend knew that a Friday morning event would be a long-shot for me to be able to schedule. However, for some RANDOM reason he called anyway….and for some RANDOM reason I was able to free up my schedule and agreed to sing.
The funeral was Friday March 31, 2017. As I raced from my office to the Church, I began pondering questions that all singers might ponder just before a funeral Mass: Who passed away? What were the circumstances? Will this be a typical funeral for an elderly relative, or will this be one of the harder ones that will require me to contend with particularly grueling emotions.
When I pulled my car into the parking lot it was obvious that this would be one of the hard ones – too many cars, too many people…. this was definitely someone special and my instincts told me that it was probably an untimely passing. I proceeded straight to the choir loft, where my friend/organist met me for our 10-minute quick review of the program…that’s just about when my instincts proved to be accurate. I learned that the funeral was indeed being held for a young woman who lost her battle with cancer.
This will sound like it is embellished, but by RANDOM timing, and at nearly the very moment that I was learning who I was singing for, I received a text message from my lifelong friend (and co-founder of DDBCF) David Caldarella. If you know David, you are aware that in one of his roles with our foundation, he is all-too often forced to attend funerals/viewings for so many beautiful souls taken far too early by cancer that become acquaintances, friends and in some cases family for him.
David had no reason to fathom that I might be standing in a church on a RANDOM Friday morning – let alone preparing to sing for a RANDOMLY scheduled funeral Mass. Reading further – David’s message conveyed that he had just attended a viewing for yet another beautiful young woman who lost her life to cancer. It was remarkable to realize that David and I were RANDOMLY sharing a mutual moment of anger and sadness. We continued texting for a few minutes, and very soon realized the incredible coincidence – David and I were talking about the same beautiful person. Yes, the RANDOMLY scheduled funeral Mass was for the same beautiful young woman (Cassandra) that David had been visiting, supporting and became friends with over the past few years – neither of us had any idea.
I believe that the bright shining DDBCF Beacon of Hope is casting a wide and warm light in darkness today, and it motivates me more than ever to continue working to help provide care, assistance and HOPE to those suffering with – and unfortunately sometimes being devastated by cancer.
#WeWill continue shining light in darkness
Carmen Malatino
Co-Founder
David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation
