Grand Island, Neb. — The CHI Health St. Francis Foundation’s annual Ticket to Ride fundraiser will take two paths toward helping cancer patients in 2016.
First, Ticket to Ride will donate half the proceeds to the Patient Cancer Treatment Assistance Program, which provides financial assistance to cancer patients, most often with nonmedical expenses that they face during treatment.
“Many people battling cancer go through financial difficulties,” said Claire Aguilar, director of the St. Francis Foundation. “The money often can ease some of the stress and put the patient in a better frame of mind to go through treatment.”
Second, the project will help purchase several radiation therapy immobilizations devices that will help cancer patients receive more comfortable and accurate treatment.
“One of the ongoing issues for patients in radiation therapy is that any movement may cause the treatment to extend to healthy cells,” said Heather Williams, supervisor of radiation therapy. “Recently several innovations have come out that can improve treatment and make the patient more comfortable.”
Tickets are now on sale through the 6:30 p.m. Thursday, May 19, drawing for a new car or $15,000 in cash at Dinsdale Automotive. Drawings also will be made for nine other prizes, each worth $500. Only 999 tickets may be sold.
More than half of the money will go directly to patients with financial challenges similar to those assisted this past year:
- The cancer bills for a man living on Social Security totaled $400,000. Medicare and his gap polices covered all but $4,000 of the treatment costs, but he faces other bills. He has been treated by five different doctors and been through numerous scans. The project helped him pay some living costs to help him buy time to meet some of his cancer bills.
- A single mom in her early 30s with a young child learned became overwhelmed during her breast cancer assessment and treatment. Mounting medical bills combined with lost hours at work, due to treatment side effects, caused her to become very withdrawn. A nurse took the initiative to use the Cancer Treatment funds for vouchers for groceries and gas and the young woman changed. The assistance helped her to open up and discuss the issues she was facing with more hope and confidence.
- Another mother with cancer that spread throughout her body has four children at home. She worries about a future for her family. Even so, she is grateful that support from the Patient Cancer Treatment Assistance fund is helping her through the present.
- One woman from north of Grand Island battles cancer and needed to receive treatments twice a day for 10 days. She had to drive more than an hour each way. The program helped pay for her transportation costs.
- A young man doing physical; work had to leave his job for five weeks during his cancer treatment. The lack of income created a severe financial burden. The Patient Cancer Treatment Assistance Fund and his church helped him get through the weeks when he had no income.
Aguilar said the Foundation decided designate funds to the Cancer Treatment Assistance Program because the patients, already under tremendous stress, often have to deal with numerous costs that don’t show up in medical bills.
Ticket to Ride also will help patients be more comfortable and receive better results during radiation therapy. Funds also will support:
- extended head stops and contoured head rests that provide more comfort to the patient and reduce involuntary mobility
- breast boards with removable with adjustable parts that can prevent the common occurrence of patients sliding downward during therapy;
- and belly boards that help created position health organs away from the radiation during rectal cancer treatments.
Aguilar said she wishes good fortune to every ticket buyer during the Ticket to Ride campaign, but added that those who buy tickets will create wins for the patients. “We want to be clear that every cent spent on Ticket to Ride will help our cancer patients,” she said.
In addition to the grand prize, nine $500 dollar prizes that will be awarded to luck ticket buyers. The subsequent prizes include:
- $500 Conestoga Mall Gift Card – Donated by Conestoga Mall
- $500 Gift Card to Super Saver – Donated by Super Saver
- $500 Gas Card – Donated by Tom and Sue Pirnie
- $500 Visa Card – Donated by Agriculture Services, Inc.
- $500 Visa Card – Donated by Arby’s of Grand Island
- $500 Visa Card – Donated by Lacy Construction
- $500 Visa Card – Donated by FBFS, Lisa Huisman, Agent
- $500 Visa Card – Donated by Kim and Russ Rerucha
- $500 Visa Card – Donated by Ryan and Nicole Hansen and Gary and Susy Tournor
Those not present will be notified immediately after the drawing. Tickets sell for $100 and are available at the St. Francis Foundation, the St. Francis Main ACC, Tom Dinsdale Automotive or any Foundation board member or trustee.
“The Cancer Treatment Assistance Program won’t solve all financial problems for patients but it can make an important difference,” Aguilar said.