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Suffolk Life, May 7, 2008
By Susan J. Greenberg
After its inaugural event last year that raised more than $50,000 for lung cancer research, organizers of Kites for a Cure, which benefits Joan's Legacy Lung Cancer Foundation, are hopeful that this year's Memorial Day endeavor will be even more successful.
"Five hundred and fifty people came specifically for this event from as far away as Maryland," said Roxanne Donovan, coordinator of Kites for a Cure and board member of Joan's Legacy. "There has never been anything like this before for lung cancer and because of our success last year, people are planning to do this all around the country."
In addition to being a fundraiser, Kites for a Cure, said Donovan, is a symbolic event meant to raise awareness of lung cancer as an epidemic and to highlight the profound effect that such an illness has on families. People of all ages gather to fly kites on the beach in Southampton in honor of Joan Scarangello, a Southampton resident and non-smoker who lost her battle with lung cancer in 2001.
"This event symbolizes life and the importance of family and community in the fight against lung cancer," explained Donovan, who, as Joan's sister-in-law, saw the devastation from the disease first hand. "There is also something very symbolic about kites grabbing on to the fresh air that we all need to live and that we so often take for granted. The event is so meaningful because people of all ages, whether you are seven or 70, can come and celebrate life together."
Joan's Legacy, a non-profit organization headquartered in New York, was started by Scarangello's family and friends after her death, said Donovan, and has since awarded $3.65 million in research grants to identify the causes of and possible cures for lung cancer. In the past year alone, 12 grants were funded out of a total of 65 applicants, with two follow-up awards given to prior researchers who have shown the most progress. Joan's Legacy has grown to become one of the leading sources of funding for lung cancer research in the country, she added, and has become recognized world-wide as the singular venture capital source for important and innovative research into the disease.
According to Susan Mantel, the foundation's executive director, lung cancer will kill more Americans this year than colon, breast, pancreatic and prostate cancers combined, yet it receives less federal research funding per death than any of the other major cancers.
"There is a stigma associated with lung cancer that those who get it deserve it because they were smokers," said Mantel. "However, there are 25,000 people who never smoked and are diagnosed each year, along with 135,000 current or former smokers who are also diagnosed annually. We believe that no one deserves lung cancer and we are committed to raising both awareness and funds to help find a cure."
Having lost his father to lung cancer four and a half years ago, Southampton Village Mayor Mark Epley said he found the Kites for a Cure event to be cathartic. "Last year, looking at all the kites on the beach brought a tear to my eye," said Epley. "It was an absolutely beautiful experience. My whole family went. There was a lot of emotion there because everyone was there for a reason ... because they lost family members to this brutal disease. Families were grouped together in a moment of silence thinking about the loved ones that they lost."
The event is an effective way to get the message out about lung cancer in a very grassroots way, according to Epley. He noted that the organization raises awareness and brings in "money for research to try to prevent someone from undergoing what my father underwent. Any opportunity we get to educate people on lung cancer and improve research to fight the disease is something that we all should support."
According to Mantel, Joan's Legacy is looking forward to increasing the number of grants for next year, and has already put forth a request for proposals to potential recipients. Awards will be announced this October and, through sponsors and fundraising, the organization currently has an estimated $1.4 million available to give away.
"It comes right down to events like Kites to determine just how much we will have to award," said Mantel, who anticipates that the number will rise. "The more participants we have, the more we can give away for research."
In their work, both Mantel and Donovan have found this journey in Scarangello's honor to be a life-affirming experience. "Joan is there with us on the beach," said Donovan. "It was her favorite place. To have our family on the beach bring people together is really moving and meaningful."
In dealing directly with those who have been affected by lung cancer, Mantel said that she has been given a first-hand view of what is truly important about life. "When someone is told that they are dying, it is amazing how clear these people are about what really matters to them," offered Mantel. "I am reminded of that everyday - to not get caught up in the junk. I think about how I want to spend each day, about who matters to me, about my relationships and the people in my life. I mourn every person that I work with, but I also have to be aware of the brightness of the life they live when they live it."
The Kites for a Cure event will be held on Saturday, May 24, from 4 to 6 p.m., on Coopers Beach in Southampton. With each $25 voluntary donation, said Donovan, guests will receive a kite they can decorate on-site - drawing pictures or writing names, wishes and messages to send into the sky - in addition to a snack and a T-shirt.
For more information about Kites for a Cure, to RSVP to the event, or to learn more about Joan's Legacy and lung cancer, call 212-627-5500 or visit www.joanslegacy.org.
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