Capitol Broadcasting Company serves as Media Sponsor for the 10th Anniversary Celebration of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, and WRAL-TV Sports Anchor Jeff Gravley, a big supporter of the event, serves as emcee.
The Kay Yow Cancer Fund, formed long before the death of the Hall of Fame NC State University women’s basketball coach, has extended her success off the court and into the realm of cancer research.
“It is hard to believe that it’s been 10 years because it seems like yesterday Coach (Yow was still walking the sidelines, still coaching and still teaching us all life lessons,” said Stephanie Glance, CEO of the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
• Play4Kay: ACC coaches discuss Kay Yow’s lasting impact
The fund, formed long before the death of the Hall of Fame NC State University women’s basketball coach, has extended her success off the court and into the realm of cancer research.
Yow, who died at age 66 in 2011, was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987. As her cancer returned, she created and shared a game plan to fight it, one the Kay Yow Cancer Fund continues to apply to this day.
The fund is designed to inspire, to motivate and to leverage the values of teamwork to make a significant impact on the fight against all women’s cancers.
The mission statement of the fund is simple. Step 1: Fund research. To date the Kay Yow Cancer Fund has given $5.63 million in its first 10 years, a pretty remarkable total that began with Yow’s singular vision.
A secondary mission is to serve the underserved. The Kay Yow Cancer Fund supports two mobile mammography units to travel to rural counties in the State of North Carolina, offering mammograms to women who don’t have insurance or don’t have enough insurance to cover the exams.
Some of those ladies have been part in the annual Hoops for Hope or Play for Kay game.
“Women’s basketball as a sport has really carried the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. Through the Play for Kay initiative, we have games in all 50 states,” Glance said.
The Kay Yow Cancer Fund was launched nationally 10 years ago but its roots are firmly planted in Raleigh, she said.
The staff continues to work diligently to the beat of encouragement from their coach.
“In true Kay Yow fashion, she would thank everyone, but then she would encourage all of us and tell us we can do more and we will do more,” Glance said.
On Thursday, May 3, 2018, the fund marks 10 years of helping others with an event, appropriately enough, at on the Kay Yow Court at North Carolina State University’s Reynolds Coliseum. WRAL’s Jeff Gravley will be the master of ceremonies, and tickets are available for $50.
Thanks to Corp’s George Habel & WRALSportsFan.com for this capcom story & photo.
