This month, 60,000 equals 50,000. Huh? I was never very good at math, but let me explain. KCCure has been offered a $50,000 matching grant for all the money we raise during No Tie July. The thing is, a “match” is actually tie! And we cannot have a tie during No Tie July! Help us raise $60,000. That’s a dollar for every person who will be diagnosed with kidney cancer this year. We need this so that we can get that fantastic $50,000 match!
How this match came about is an interesting story. It starts with a woman named Lanier. I was working at a trade association in Washington, DC, when I first heard about Lanier, who at the time was coalitions director for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. I got e-mails from her on a daily basis, but that didn’t mean I knew her, and it definitely didn’t mean she knew me.
From left: Dena, some great runners, and Lanier at the Boo Run for Life.
That began to change when my friend told me that Lanier had been diagnosed with kidney cancer. When we connected, it was related to the Boo Run for Life, a race in DC that benefits kidney cancer research at surgery.
Knowing what Chris and I had gone through, I wanted to make sure Lanier didn’t run into the same problems. We met for coffee, and I offered to help make an appointment with Dr. Hans Hammers (a KCCure co-founder). That was the beginning of a very special friendship.
Today, Lanier is still cancer free and living in North Carolina with her amazing husband Scott and her way-too-cute daughter Bailey. She works for the UNC healthcare system and remains a strong advocate for cancer patients. How strong? In 2013, Lanier’s family made a decision to sell an ultra rare 1967 Ferrari, a prized possession owned by her late grandfather. It sold at auction for a staggering $27.5 million, one of the highest prices ever paid for a car at an auction.
But that’s not the amazing part.
The amazing part of the story is that the family designated in advance that every dime from the car sale would go to charity. Lanier called me earlier this month to tell me that her family had decided to match up to $50,000 dollars for KCCure’s month-long fundraising effort, No Tie July. I was moved to tears, but then I realized that a matching donation is a tie. With your support, we are going to raise $60,000 during No Tie July! When it comes to kidney cancer research, we don’t want a tie. We need a win.
