BBB Group Donates to Lamar Area Hospice

BBB Fundraising Committee at Lamar Area Hospice

The annual Beer & Brats for Boobies fundraising event held on September 23^rd in Lamar, raised $21,000 which was presented to Deb Pelley, Executive Director of the Lamar Area Hospice this past Tuesday, October 31^st.

BBB Runners (left to right) Alec Wilcox and William Ramsey

This marks the 6^th BBB event which highlights the impact breast cancer has on area residents and their families.  The fun run/walk event mixes exercise, camaraderie, and community involvement to help raise awareness of breast cancer and to raise funds for Hospice efforts for local residents.

BBB Group of Volunteers

Pelley said the money will be dedicated to two areas, “We’re using some of the funds for palliative care for our clients. There is no payer source for that, so this is the only way it’s funded.  The other half of the donation will be used for the Good Grief Program for Children which is expanding its services in the hospice service area.”

BBB Has a Lot of Volunteers

She explained that under the direction of Roni Vallejos, Child Life Specialist and Good Grief Coordinator, children’s needs are being met in a number of ways. “A lot of families that use her services probably couldn’t afford to pay for a specialist, so this donation helps pay the bills for her counseling as well as diabetes information, foster kids who need assistance and kids with life-limiting illnesses.  These children’s lives are altered and she offers an opportunity for them to come to terms on how these events impact their lives.”  Pelley added, “We’re writing grants to help raise funds, but beyond the Father-Daughter Dance this past winter, this donation really helps with our expenses.  The one thing we don’t want to do is turn anyone away.  We’ll work to find a solution with our resources on hand.”

Lisa McCollough, fund-raising member, said, “We’ve increased our donations through mostly local, corporate sponsorships that account for about 75% of our donations. We’ve increased from $7,000 to $15,000, $20,000 and now our $21,000 level this past year.  We really appreciate the way they’ve helped us in our efforts.”  Commemorative tee shirts of the run are still for sale and donations can be made at any time through the year.

Megan Grett, whose sister, Jill Tinnes, was the original driving force of the event, said, “We do this for about four hours on one day of the year, but we want everyone to continue to be aware of how breast cancer affects everyone. It’s something that never leaves you and our goal is to help everyone be aware of how we can work to offer support to each other.”

Megan added, “We are in our 6th year of BBB which was founded by Jillian S. Tinnes who was diagnosed with breast cancer but sadly left this earth in 2014.  Since then we have continued to honor her and those battling breast cancer.  Jill’s vision was to bring awareness to our community in a fun and positive manner and to keep all our contributions local. We strive to continue her legacy and we hope that with just a few hours of one day we’re able to show our love and support for everyone battling cancer and to remind our community to be aware of breast cancer.”

By Russ Baldwin