On February 15th 2016, Director Dani Corso and Co-Founder David Caldarella visited Dr. Ai Zhang’s Advanced Public Relations and Social Media Classes at Stockton University. Dr. Ai and her students always deliver an intensely positive discussion surrounding the mission of the Foundation. We are grateful to be working with two awesome student groups again this semester. It was during our February 15th visit that the concept to create a Patient Advocate Committee (PAC) within David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation (DDBCF) was born!
Our Patient Advocate Committee consists of the very people who inspire us on a daily basis: patients, caregivers and medical personnel. This PAC will spread awareness on the impact the Foundation has with our families battling cancer because our PAC have witnessed this first-hand. They will also be able to offer support and HOPE to our current families battling cancer that will help the healing process for everybody involved. We asked 7 people to join our Patient Advocate Committee and all 7 responded with a Resounding YES!
We want to welcome: Dawn Aversa, Elizabeth Martinez, Patty Springstead, Susie Buzby, Tina Angers and Lauren & Bill Raney. We have 3 patients, 4 caregivers, 1 oncology nurse navigator and 1 married couple. We are honored to have them join us with such a strong desire to help others and bring light to so many others battling this deadly disease! #ABeaconOfHope
Tina AngersSusie BuzbyPatty SpringsteadElizabeth MartinezLauren RaneyDawn AversaBill Raney
The mission of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation was born out of my personal battle with Stage IV Head and Neck cancer and the support that was given to me by family, friends, medical team and strangers! A day like today is only made possible with the support from our Board of Directors, Sponsors, Volunteers, Community and most importantly the patients and families who inspire us on a daily basis with their determination, courage and heart. A special thank you to my girlfriend and Realtor from REMAX of Barnegat Bay, Catherine Deely who worked on securing the lease and is donating 100% of her commission back to the Foundation. Our main focus from day one was to offer our patients and their families financial assistance/services but most importantly HOPE in the darkest of times.
That is why Today is a Monumental day in the brief 5 year history of this Foundation. Today is MOVING DAY into our “Official” David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation office! This is a major step for the Foundation that will allow us to have a professional, safe and private space to meet with our families going through the most difficult time in their lives. A few of our sponsors have offered to pay a month’s rent on behalf of the Foundation and we will be spotlighting these wonderful businesses in the next couple of weeks. We would encourage our patients, sponsors, volunteers, students and any interested parties to visit us at 364 North Main Street, Suite 10D, Manahawkin NJ!
The 5th Annual Stafford Run for HOPE: Tri/Du/Aqua/5K will take place on Saturday June 18th at Manahawkin Lake Park in Manahawkin, NJ! This is the 5th year for the Stafford Tri/Du/Aqua event but this is the first year that David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation will be integrally involved in this event in collaboration with our friend Ross Reynolds from Trident Multipsort! We want to thank our friends at Informed Mortgage for signing on as our Presenting Sponsor. We cannot thank the team at Informed Mortgage enough for their continued dedication and commitment to better serve our families affected by a cancer diagnosis!
We are very excited that our David’s Dream & Believe student group from Southern Regional High Schoolwill be managing various aspects of this event for us and will have many students participating in the race. Our youth group Generation Dream will have many members and their families participating in this event.
We are also excited to announce a new partnership with 11th Hour Racing. This organization created by Mike Rowe who is an ED/Trauma Tech in the ER at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia where our Co-Founder David Caldarella was treated for Stage IV Head and Neck cancer. 11th Hour Racing’s mission is very similar to that of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation and Mike and David have created a friendship and partnership that will benefit our mutual families battling a cancer diagnosis!
We are still accepting sponsorships for the 5th Annual Stafford Run for Hope: Tri/Du/Aqua/5K! Click on Sponsorship Form link below.
We were informed at the beginning of 2015 about a very exciting new partnership between David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation(DDBCF) and our friends at Informed Mortgage. A heartfelt thanks to our Director Dani Corso and her company Volatile Media Management for fostering the vision for this new partnership! Our hometown mortgage specialists committed to donate $25.00 to DDBCF for every loan closed by their Manahawkin, NJ office! The Informed Mortgage Team made the exact same commitment to our friends and community partners at The Jetty Rock Foundation (JRF)! Through the first 10 months of 2015, Informed Mortgage used a creative Planned Giving Initiative to donate $15,375.00 to both DDBCF & JRF!
We must thank the entire staff at Informed Mortgage for their personal investment in the mission of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation. Informed Mortgage have made a long-term commitment to bring HOPE to our patients and their families affected by a cancer diagnosis!
It’s unique and creative Planned Giving initiative’s like this one with Informed Mortgage that afford David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation the opportunity to direct the highest % of funds back to our families in desperate need of our support. Please contact our friends at Informed Mortgage NJ for all your Mortgage/Refi needs by calling them today at: (609) 597-0007.
Tickets are $40.00pp. The event runs 7-11 pm and includes comedy entertainment from Uncle Vinnie’s Comedy Club, dinner buffet, cash bar, live and silent auctions!
Ticket Agents: Luann Ford, CPA, 369 North Main Street, Barnegat, NJ 08005, WB Grant Agency, 344 South Main Street, Barnegat, NJ 08005, Meticulous Landscaping, 364 Route 9, Waretown, NJ 08758.
Please contact David Caldarella (609) 548-3382 or david@davidsdreamandbelieve.org for more information
We want to continue highlighting our business sponsors that have donated in excess of $10,000.00 in 2015 and have made a long-term commitment to support David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation!
Our friends at the Sea Shell Resort & Beach Club stepped up their donations to DDBCF through various forms of giving in 2015. It came in the form of event sponsorships, memorial donations and this year’s 19th Annual Sea Shell Resort & Beach Club Striped Bass Derby. The icing on the cake for the families of DDBCF was Mike and Jaimee Boyle’s Holiday Party. They asked their friends to attend the party but requested no gifts and only donations for a particular husband and daughter family of DDBCF that are currently living in a motel after the wife/mother passed away from cancer earlier this year. It’s the “Generosity of Spirit” displayed by the entire Hughes Family and their amazing staff throughout the year that affords DDBCF the opportunity to assist those families like the one above affected by a cancer diagnosis!
We have held our Island Gala at the Sea Shell Resort & Beach for the past 3 years. The partnership between the two organizations grows stronger every day. A special thank you to Tom, Jaimee and Brittany for working so dilligently to ensure our Island Gala is a complete success each and every year. It’s a testament to the Hughes family and their staff when our guests inform us they felt like they were attending a family party. That’s exactly how all of us feel and we really hope you support the sponsors like the Sea Shell Resort & Beach Club that make giving to the families of DDBCF a priority for not only their business but also in their personal lives!
Those are the words I heard on April 20, 2010 and on April 22nd 2010; I heard it was Stage IV Head & Neck Cancer! The following 7 months of my ongoing battle with cancer proved to be nothing short of hell on earth. It was my faith in God and the love from family, friends and strangers that buoyed my courage to continue to fight. It was a medical team that showed no limits in their compassion for supporting me then and that continues today! Lastly, it was the Dream and Action of creating a charity to make my nephew and nieces proud of their uncle that would “Pay it Forward” long after my life were to end whether that was during my battle with cancer or many years later. Thankfully, we are at the many years later and 5 years to be exact!
David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation is on the doorstep of offering financial assistance, services and HOPE to 500 families in less than 5 years. 200+ families just in 2015! This generosity of spirit, compassion and love would not be possible were it not for YOU. YOU are the individual donors that attend events, create fundraisers and make a general donation or sign up for planned giving. YOU are the business that sponsors an event, create fundraisers and make a general donation or finds a creative way to offer planned giving to DDBCF. YOU are the volunteers that selflessly give up your time to assist us with an event or serve on a committee. YOU are the individuals or businesses that donate auction items or food to an event. YOU are the students in elementary, middle, high school or colleges that sign up to volunteer on behalf of the Foundation. YOU are the family and friends that not only support the Foundation but stand by me and understand that this is my mission in life. YOU are the girlfriend that stands by my side, donates, volunteers and works on committees for the Foundation. YOU are the directors that have served or currently serve on a 100% volunteer basis and give your talents, time and heart to the families of this Foundation! YOU are the PATIENTS and FAMILIES battling a cancer diagnosis and those PATIENTS who have courageously lost their battle to cancer that inspire all of us. YOU are all reasons we have been able to offer HOPE to 500 families!
I spent the anniversary of my 5 years cancer-free with a new friend at the Baseball Park where his son had practice. I was introduced back in April by a mutual friend when she learned of his similar diagnosis to mine. We have spoken numerous times throughout the past 7 months during his almost identical surgeries, radiation and chemo. He has completed his radiation and chemo and had his last surgery about 55 days ago. We talked for quite some time and shared our similar experiences. 3 things stuck out more than anything else. He asked if the pain would ever stop. I remember the horrific and constant pain like it was yesterday. I not only understood his pain but I assured him he was in the home stretch and to keep the faith. Next, he brought a cooler with water for both of us. The pain reared up again when he would drink his water. I remember that awful feeling when even drinking water felt like you were drinking charred glass. Lastly but most importantly, he told me he got a call from his doctor on his way to meet me that he was CANCER-FREE! I informed him that the same day was my 5 years CANCER-FREE anniversary!
I am truly grateful for today and I’m elated when God blesses me with a new sunrise tomorrow! I cannot thank you enough for your friendship and support for DDBCF!
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!”
We are excited for the 2nd Annual Survival of the Mills on Sunday October 11, 2015 presented by Trident Multisport to benefit David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation. Our main event sponsor remains Ocean Acupuncture & Herbal Medicine Wellness Center in Manahawkin, NJ! Owners Kim & John Manzella and their staff have been ardent supporters of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation since the inception of the Foundation. We also want to thank our friend & Race Director Ross Reynolds at Trident Multisport for creating this unique, scenic and demanding race.
Please visit Survival of the Mills for more information about the race and to register for this incredible event!
Click on below attachment for more information regarding Sponsorship & Food/Drink opportunities. Please contact David Caldarella at david@davidsdreamandbelieve.org or Kim Manzella at kim@davidsdreamandbelieve.org to reserve your sponsorship!
“You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have!”
Our friends at the Beach Haven Moose Riders hosted the 3rd Annual Rocktoberfest on Saturday October 19th to benefit David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation. This event takes place at the Beach Haven NJ Moose Lodge 1575.
We formed a partnership with the Beach Haven Moose Riders 3 years ago at our Cruisin for a Cure motorcycle and classic car event. We had horrible weather that day with blowing winds, cold temperatures and sideways rain. However, the Beach Haven Moose Riders made the decision to ride no matter the conditions because they understood our patients affected by a cancer diagnosis needed their help and they were not going to let them down. They continue to “Ride” for our patients throughout the year and Rocktoberfest 2015 was a huge success. We look forward to working side by side with the amazing men and women from the Beach Haven Moose Riders for many years to come!
We want to thank our friends at The Dutchmans for providing authentic German food throughout the day.
Thank you to Ted Hammock, The 559 and Either Way for donating your time and incredible talents to our Live Music stage for this year’s Rocktoberfest. A special thanks to Shamrock and Thistle Pipes and Drums.
Thank you to our host venue and members from the Beach Haven NJ Moose Lodge 1575.
Thank you to all the auction donors and volunteers.
A special thanks to Wealth Management Group and our friend Doug Chapman for your support!
Lastly, thank you to everybody that joined us for a day filled with great food, beverages, incredible live music and most importantly we all joined together to help the patients of David’s Dream & Believe Cancer Foundation battling a cancer diagnosis. Thank you!
