HAPPY NEW YEAR & THANK YOU!
|
|
From all of us at BCAG, we hope you had a wonderful holiday season. We are VERY appreciative of all the individuals and businesses who supported the Breast Cancer Assistance Group of Monterey County during the MONTEREY COUNTY GiVES! 2018 Campaign. Your generosity will provide more than $22,000 of financial assistance to local breast cancer patients in 2019.
We also gratefully acknowledge the support from the
Monterey Peninsula Foundation,
host of the AT&T Pebble Beach ProAm,
for a grant that offsets nearly half of BCAG’s modest operating expenses. Thanks to their help,
more than $93 of each $100 donated to BCAG goes directly to assisting our special needs recipients.
We wish you all a happy and healthy 2019!
Sincerely,
Jane Sullivan
President
Breast Cancer Assistance Group of Monterey County
|
|
Join us for our 17th Annual Bowl-a-thon!
|
|
This year's BCAG Bowl-a-thon promises to be a huge success! The event will take place on March 23rd, 2019, from 1:00pm - 4:00pm at the Monterey Lanes.
The Pacific Grove High School Associated Student Body will once again co-sponsor the event in memory of 2008 graduate, Isabelle McKay Giacalone. All proceeds will be designated for grants to assist young mothers being treated for breast cancer.
Last year was a sell-out, so register your team today!
For all information, registration, and sponsorship opportunities please visit BCAG's
Bowlathon.net
website.
|
|
|
Natividad Foundation's Wendy Baker RN Memorial Fund
|
|
BCAG is honored to be partnering with the Natividad Foundation and the
Wendy Baker RN Memorial Fund
to help provide financial assistance to women who are diagnosed with breast cancer and are Natividad patients.The Wendy Baker fund helps low-income women receive cancer care, transportation, meals and medical treatment.
Wendy Baker served the Salinas community as a registered nurse for 30 years, both at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital and Natividad. The fund was founded in her honor after she lost her battle with breast cancer in 2015.
|
|
The Food Bank for Monterey County Provides Food Assistance to 32% of BCAG Applicants
|
|
2019 marks the beginning of our sixth year of partnering with
The Food Bank for Monterey County
to provide food assistance to women and men going through treatment for breast cancer.
The Food Bank delivers food directly to cancer patients in their homes and has
provided 145 BCAG grant recipients with 338 months of food over the past 5 years.
These foods are specially selected to address the unique nutritional needs of patients in treatment or recovery and include a variety of food items and fresh produce that a limited budget cannot accommodate. This program, funded by a private donor, addresses a critical need of struggling patients and their families, relieving them of the burden of worrying about the whens, whats, and ifs of their next meals, so they can focus on treatment.
Consideration for enrollment in our emergency Food Bank partnership is included as part of BCAG's evaluation of applications for assistance.
|
|
Former BCAG Grant Recepient "Pays it Forward" with BCAG Fundraiser
|
|
When Lydia Sterling was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2017 she received assistance from BCAG to help pay her living expenses while she was unable to work. She knew at the time she wanted to help other women who were struggling financially while undergoing breast cancer treatment but wasn't quite sure how. As an instructor at the
Center for Employment Training
, Lydia taught students the skills needed to launch a successful career. When she shared with her class the idea of helping local women with breast cancer they decided to launch a series of fundraisers for breast cancer awareness month. Lydia set a goal of $500 and to her amazement the class quadrupled that amount and in November presented BCAG with a check for $2100. “My students and co-workers all came together, not only for me but for our community”, says Lydia. She is already planning additional monthly fundraisers and hopes to exceed $2100 by the end of October 2019.
Lydia and her students would like to thank the following organizations for their generous support:
*True Value- King City
*Soledad Pharmacy
*La Fiesta Party Supplies-Soledad
*Missing Hole Donut Shop- Castroville
*Castro Bakery and Deli - King City
*Minerva and Antonio Martinez- Soledad
|
|
Above, Lydia Sterling presents fundraising check to BCAG Board Member, Barbara Steele.
Below, student facepainting and temporary tattoos proved to be a very popular fundraiser.
|
|
Your Donations to BCAG Make a Difference...
|
“I needed support rather desperately and BCAG was there for me. You truly were there for me, thank you. Not the money alone, but the knowing that somebody cares. The knowing that this is a group of breast cancer survivors, that there are survivors; that is a helpful thought. Thank you. Wonderful to not be so alone, to have help.”
Lizette, a 70+ year old widow and breast cancer patient, lost her long-term rental in the spring of 2018 when the owners decided to sell the house. Since her eviction, Lizette has been living in her car while undergoing aggressive treatments for metastatic breast cancer that has invaded her hips, neck, femur, lung and spine. She is under the care of Monterey County doctors but must also travel to Santa Cruz and Stanford for specialized treatments.
With a small income only from Social Security, Lizette gets some support services from local organizations including
Dorothy’s Place
and
Gathering for Women
. Her case worker reached out to BCAG while she was helping Lizette apply for a rental housing voucher. BCAG committed to providing the deposit on a rental and utilities once an appropriate rental had been found. In the interim, BCAG provided funds for gas and short-term housing while Lizette underwent a complicated medical procedure at Stanford that required a few days of recovery—not in a car!
Lizette just received her rental assistance voucher and, thankfully, a landlord willing to take it! BCAG immediately provided funds for the down payment and start-up expenses so this brave breast cancer patient can move forward with her life and treatments in a safe and warm setting in 2019. The generous contributions of local donors, coupled with partnerships with local medical professionals and support organizations, make it possible for BCAG to achieve our mission “to help others with breast cancer as we would have wanted to be helped ourselves.”
If you or someone you know has been diagnosed with breast cancer and would like to apply for a grant from
BCAG
, please visit our website for more information and to download a grant application.
|
|
Breast Cancer Assistance Group of Monterey County |Phone: 831-649-6365| Fax:866-219-8561
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
