DDBCF Crisis Action Plan – COVID-19

Special Announcement: COVID-19 Impact on DDBCF Operations – PLEASE READ

March 23, 2020

Dear Patients, Donors, Volunteers & Friends of DDBCF,

Our mission at David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation (DDBCF) has always been to serve as Beacons of Hope to those in darkness, and the entire DDBCF family HOPES that you and yours are healthy and safe during this global crisis.

Recognizing you are collectively concerned, stressed, tired & overloaded with information, we especially thank you for taking just a moment to learn how DDBCF has been impacted and is responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic. The bullets below help summarize the key updates of our crisis mode of operation – we have made these decisions in order to continue delivering on our mission for many years to come.

Crisis Mode of Operation – DDBCF Board of Directors approved the following measures: Friday 3/20/20

  • Staff: CEO David Caldarella moves to full time volunteer status with a temporary lay-off. Office Manager Michelle Phillip will be part-time working remotely from home responding to any urgent patient needs or questions.
  • Patient Grants: 51 current requests remain unanswered and new requests are currently frozen
  • Patient Programs & Activities: Temporarily suspended until further notice.
  • Events: April: Easter Pancake Breakfast & Lakewood Blueclaws – Cancelled. May: Summer Kick Off – Postponed. June: Cosimano Golf Classic – Cancelled & Run for Hope: TBD.

In closing, although these changes are painful and difficult, they are also TEMPORARY. With your friendship, the continued support of amazingly generous Planned Giving Partners, DDBCF will emerge as a stronger and even more brilliant BEACON OF HOPE for our patients and their families battling a cancer diagnosis.

As noted above, there are currently over 51 patients and their families currently suffering with critical needs – if you are able to provide any additional financial support at this time, please know that our current Crisis Mode will enable us to immediately pass 100% of every dollar directly to one of those patients. We thank each one of you for your past, present and future support.

God Bless you and your families!

Carmen Malatino
President & Co-Founder
David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation

On Behalf of Board of Directors

“When random coincidence is actually the well-directed, brightly shining light from A Beacon of Hope”

Hope
random coincidence
Cassandra L. Peters

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

A Beacon of Hope

A Beacon of Hope

On Friday December 2nd, David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation reached $200,000.00 in grant donations for the calendar year of 2016 for the first time in our six-year existence. This major milestone is staggering and sobering at the same time. 226 Families are the recipients of the $200,558.24 in grant assistance. Our patients in 2016 range in ages from an 18-month-old girl from Manahawkin to an 84-year-old woman from Ocean Township. Assistance is provided in the form of financial grants including: rent, mortgage, utilities, medical, transportation, groceries and most importantly HOPE in the form of compassion, generosity and love!

$200,000.00 in grant donations for our patients battling a cancer diagnosis are a blessing and lifeline but this “Generosity of Spirit” would not be possible without the support from: our completely volunteer Board of Directors present & past, our Directors of Patient Advocacy, volunteers, individual donors, business sponsors, our youth group Generation Dream & their parents, our Southern Regional High School student group and many more. Most importantly the patients & families who inspire all of us on a daily basis!

We realize the patient grant applications continue to increase at an alarming rate but we also see the passionate, growing and energized team forming alongside David’s Dream & Believe ready to support those families in their darkest of times. We Appreciate You & Thank You!

Thank you, David Caldarella 

Pancake Breakfast with Santa

Pancake Breakfast with Santa
Pancake Breakfast with Santa

PANCAKE BREAKFAST WITH SANTA!

Please join David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation on Sunday December 4th between 8:00 – 11:00am at TGI Fridays Manahawkin for our final event of 2016. It’s time for our 2nd Annual Pancake Breakfast with Santa presented by our youth group Generation Dream and students from Southern Regional High School.

$10.00 includes one order of pancakes, bacon, sausage, coffee, soft drinks and pictures with Santa.

We will have Jetty printed DDBCF gear and our Southern Regional High School/DDBCF gear avilable at discounted prices for the perfect holiday gifts for family, friends and co-workers.

#ABeaconOfHope

600 Families & Over $450,000.00 in Grant Donations!

600-Families-Web-Banner

600 Families & Over $450,000.00 in Grant Donations! 

Our first event was a party with food donated by Panzone’s Pizza at the Ship Bottom Volunteer Fire Company in December 2010. We assisted our first patient named Molly (13 years old) who was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in early 2011. Our initial goal was to provide financial assistance to 1-2 families per year who were affected by a cancer diagnosis. Our original theme was, “Saving Lives by Fighting Cancer Together.” We were able to assist 20 families in 2011 with another 50 families supported in 2012. The increased demand for support from families battling a cancer diagnosis in our local community and the New Jersey community at large skyrocketed in 2013. Our mission statement and focus was steadfast from day one – to offer financial assistance to our families. As we pursued this mission we began to see the “little engine that could” called David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation transform into a vehicle of HOPE for our patients and their families. Our renewed theme became, “A Beacon of Hope.”

The past three and a half years have resulted in an additional 530 families being offered financial assistance, services and hope! A total of 600 families & over $450,000.00 in grant donations are staggering numbers on so many levels. However, it’s our personal connection to each of our patients and their families that inspire us on a daily basis.

This monumental giving would not be possible without the support of so many and have to start with recognizing the original Board of Directors including Co-Founder Tim Hall who remains an active member of the Board and is currently serving as our Treasurer. Our Board of Directors past and present serve on a 100% volunteer basis. They all have their own families, work and other charitable commitments yet still choose to dedicate time to serve our families. Our business sponsors and individual donors have made it possible for us to offer financial assistance to 600 families and have invested themselves in our mission to help countless more. Informed Mortgage in Manahawkin is the shining example of this giving spirit as they created a planned giving initiative with guidance from our Director Dani Corso to donate $25.00 from every closed loan out of their Manahawkin office to DDBCF and our families battling cancer. This creative planned giving initiative resulted in a 2015 year-end donation of $18,000.00 to DDBCF. We have the most amazing volunteers who commit their time and energy throughout the year to support an event or activity that benefits our families battling cancer. We have our own youth group called Generation Dream created by Kim McCabe Manzella as well as student groups at Southern Regional High School and Stockton University. The 7 members of our brand new Directors of Patient Advocacy represent the 600 patients and families we have supported over the past 5+ years. All 7 members have been affected by a cancer diagnosis and have been directly impacted by David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation. They all have chosen to serve as advocates and Beacons of Hope!

I read something during my battle with stage iv head and neck cancer: “Kindness is the shadow of God in man.” Those beautiful shadows were never more present than during my battle with stage iv head and neck cancer in 2010 but they have reappeared time and time again through the mission of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation.

We encourage you to join with our team us as A Beacon of Hope!

Sincerely,
David

4th Annual Frank V. Panzone Jr. Memorial Cruisin Wrap-Up

 

Frank V. Panzone Jr.Our 2016 Frank V. Panzone Jr. Memorial Cruisin for a Cure presented by Barlow Buick GMC of Manahawkin Wrap-Up will be brimming with Love, Kindness and Hope. Thanks to the Major takeaway from this year’s event which was the introduction of our David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation brand new Patient Advocate Committee. Dawn Aversa, Tina Angers, Susie Buzby, Elizabeth Martinez, Patty Springstead and Lauren & Bill Raney comprise this new committee. All 7 members were in attendance and 4 of the members (Dawn, Lauren, Tina and Susie) bared their souls with first-hand accounts of how the Foundation has impacted their lives and the lives of their families. It’s hard to put extraordinary moments like this one into words because moments like the one above transcend words. We can tell you that the IMPACT from this extraordinary moment is still being felt today in the hearts of our patients, guests, sponsors, volunteers, directors and everybody in attendance at our 4th Annual FVP Memorial Cruisin for a Cure. We have known and embraced one fact about our mission behind the scenes since DDBCF was created 5 years ago and that is that our patients and their families come before anything else. Needless to say, we have found the true voice of the Foundation in our amazing PAC!

We want to thank the entire Panzone Family for their friendship, support and service since the very beginning. The event was renamed in 2013 to the Frank V. Panzone Jr. Memorial Cruisin for a Cure to honor Frank’s commitment to his community and desire to help those battling a cancer diagnosis. As a Foundation, we are proud to have this event in Frank’s honor and so grateful to have his family by our side throughout the year!

A very special thank you this year to our Presenting Sponsor: Barlow Buick GMC of Manahawkin! The Barlow Family did not hesitat