In 2010, a small group of dedicated and compassionate friends joined together to create a vehicle for giving to pay forward the same kindness, generosity of spirit and love that I received during my own battle with stage IV head and neck cancer. David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation was born and set out to provide support to 1-2 patients per year.
Yesterday, we reached yet another bittersweet milestone. We provided support to our Two Thousandth Patient with direct financial aid of nearly $1.9 Million Dollars! The numbers are staggering but we recognize there is an amazing patient with a story behind every number.
Landmark milestones such as reaching our TWO Thousand Patient are a time to celebrate, but also a time to renew our commitment to the David’s Dream & Believe mission of HOPE for patients and their families affected by this deadly disease. That is where you come in. Despite having reached a nearly $1.9 million dollar milestone of giving, we are seeing a continued avalanche of patient requests and your ongoing participation is as crucial now as it was when our journey began 10 years ago. We ask you to consider helping David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation as a financial donor, dedicated sponsor, or Mission of Hope Giving Partner in 2021.
Please contact Co-Founder: David Caldarella or Vice Chair of Community Affairs: Danielle Corso to learn more:
david@ddbcf.org
dani@ddbcf.org
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.
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
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
