Skate4Cancer (later known as DreamLoveCure) was a cancer advocacy foundation started by Canadian Rob Dyer in 2004. [1] [2] Skate4Cancer focused on raising awareness for various cancers, cancer screening, and preventative care.
Skate4Cancer (later known as DreamLoveCure) was a cancer advocacy foundation started by Canadian Rob Dyer in 2004. [1] [2] Skate4Cancer focused on raising awareness for various cancers, cancer screening, and preventative care.
In 2004, Dyer lost a friend, and his paternal grandmother to stomach cancer, along with his maternal grandmother and mother to brain cancer all within a span of six months. [3] Dyer cites this often as the catalyst for his first skateboard marathon to raise awareness for cancer.
In 2004, Dyer, at only 19, began his first skate marathon from Los Angeles, California to Newmarket, Ontario, a total distance of roughly 8,000 km. [4] [5] Shortly after embarking, Skate4Cancer lost one of its major sponsors due to lack of publicity. [6] [5]
During this marathon, Dyer and his support crew were stopped by law enforcement for skating on interstate highways, and being redirected around towns. [6] These unforeseen issues added considerable distance to the marathon, causing Dyer to hit 8,000 km before getting to Newmarket. Dyer suffered a stress fracture to his ankle, and was forced to end the marathon early. [3] This initial marathon raised below $100,000 for The Cancer Society and The Princess Margaret Hospital. [6]
Four years later in 2008, Skate4Cancer organized another cross country skate, this time from Vancouver, British Columbia to Halifax, Nova Scotia, with a total distance of 7,500 km. Skate4Cancer started the skate in June 2008, and finished four months later in November. [7]
The next Skate4Cancer marathon took place in early 2010, this time in New Zealand and Australia. During the Australia portion of the marathon, Dyer was hit by a car while skating, and was unable to continue skating due to a groin injury sustained in the accident. Several members of the support crew needed treatment for heat stroke. [8] [3]
After the accident and heat stroke incident, Skate4Cancer cancelled the remainder of the New Zealand and Australia marathon. Skate4cancer skated a total of 3667 km before returning to Canada. [9]
In 2011, Dyer and Skate4Cancer started a new marathon across France, and completed within three months. [10] That same year, Skate4Cancer secured a sponsorship from West 49, and raised over $100,000 from donations and t-shirt sales to support Wellspring Cancer Support. [11]
Major sponsors of Skate4Cancer included Element Skateboards, and Circa Shoes, which supported Dyer's plans for a cross-Canada tour of colleges and universities to provide students with cancer prevention information. [6]
In 2009, Skate4Cancer was one of several cancer awareness and advocacy organizations scammed by Ashley Kirilow. [12] Kirilow shaved her head, eyebrows, and starved herself to appear as though she was undergoing chemotherapy treatments, and frequently used Facebook to update her nearly 4,000 followers on her condition. Kirilow began the scam in 2008, after having a benign tumor removed from her breast. [13]
Kirilow created a fake charity called "Change for a Cure" (sometimes referenced as "Change for the Cure"), [13] which was never registered as a nonprofit and collected nearly $20,000. [14]
Kirilow contacted Skate4Cancer, who flew her to Disney World after stating it was her final wish. [15] [12] [16]
Skate4Cancer sent out a statement after allegations came forward about Kirilow, stating: "For your peace of mind, Skate4Cancer has no formal or informal affiliation to Change For A Cure. There have been no jointly held events or fundraising initiatives. Skate4Cancer's involvement with Ms. Kirilow was based solely on fulfilling what the organization believed to be a legitimate final wish from a terminally ill individual." [17]
The Cure is Knowledge Tour was another cancer awareness effort by Skate4Cancer, focused on raising awareness for cancer prevention through the music industry. Started in 2008, The Cure is Knowledge Tour organized concerts with local bands and artists for free concerts across Canada, with an emphasis on hip hop, hardcore punk, rock, and indie rock bands. [6]
Musicians that supported The Cure is Knowledge Tour included Shad, Alexisonfire, Billy Talent, Cancer Bats, City and Colour, Moneen, Silverstein, All Time Low, and Lights. The Cure is Knowledge Tour also frequently worked with festivals like NXNE, SCENE Fest and Warped Tour under the Skate4Cancer logo, adding to their visibility. [18] [6]
In 2007, Skate4Cancer organized their own live music event in Winnipeg, marketed as Skate4Cancer Winnipeg. Money raised was donated to the Health Sciences Centre. [19] The event was canceled after their 2013 event, citing lack of funding. [20]
In the fall of 2013, Skate4Cancer opened their first pop-up shop in Toronto, where clothing was sold to support Wellspring.ca and movember.com. Over $20,000 was raised as a result of the fundraiser. [21]
In 2011, Rob Dyer announced his plan to create a children's cancer support centre called Dream Love Cure. [6] Dream Love Cure, intended to be a place to support children "indirectly or directly impacted by the disease [cancer]."
In a 2014 blog, Skate4Cancer stated they would not be opening the Dream Love Cure Centre after Wellspring, a Canadian cancer support foundation and frequent partner organization, was starting their own youth-oriented support group. [22]
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), a 501(c)(3) charitable organization founded in 1949, is a voluntary health organization dedicated to fighting blood cancer world-wide. The LLS mission is: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease, and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. LLS funds blood cancer research around the world, provides free information and support services, and is a voice for all blood cancer patients seeking access to quality and affordable care.
The pink ribbon is an international symbol of breast cancer awareness. Pink ribbons, and the color pink in general, identify the wearer or promoter with the breast cancer brand and express moral support for women with breast cancer. Pink ribbons are most commonly seen during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
The Northwestern University Dance Marathon, commonly known as NUDM, is a philanthropic dance marathon held every March at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1975, NUDM is one of the nation's most established and largest entirely student-run philanthropies. NUDM is one of the only annual Dance Marathons in the country to continually change its primary beneficiary. NUDM has raised over $1 million for its beneficiaries each year since 2011, and involves over 1,000 students participating as dancers and committee members. Since 1997, the Evanston Community Foundation has been NUDM's secondary beneficiary.
The American Lebanese Syrian Associated Charities (ALSAC) is the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Its sole mission is to raise the funds and awareness necessary for St. Jude's continued operation. ALSAC is the largest healthcare related charity in the United States. The National Executive Office is located in Memphis, Tennessee. ALSAC also has over 30 local fundraising offices located in cities throughout the United States that hold over 30,000 fundraising events annually.
The Susan G. Komen 3-Day, frequently referred to as the 3-Day, is a 60-mile walk to raise funds for Susan G. Komen for the Cure and promote awareness to fight breast cancer. Individual participants must raise at least $2,300 to walk 60 miles (96 km) over a three-day weekend.
Susan G. Komen is a breast cancer organization in the United States.
Lee National Denim Day is a fundraiser created by Lee Jeans to support the women's cancer programs of the Entertainment Industry Foundation. Every year, people are asked to donate the money they would spend on a pair of jeans to support breast cancer research and wellness programs. The beneficiary of the program is the American Cancer Society. It is celebrated on the first Friday of October.
Ann Mulvale is a Canadian politician. She served as mayor of Oakville, Ontario for 18 years, from 1988 to 2006.
BC Cancer is part of the Provincial Health Services Authority in British Columbia, Canada.
Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM), also referred to in the United States as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM), is an annual international health campaign organized by major breast cancer charities every October to increase awareness of the disease and raise funds for research into its cause, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure.
Jill Kristin Vedder is an American philanthropist, activist, and former fashion model. She is the co-founder and vice chairman of EB Research Partnership, a non-profit organization dedicated to finding a cure for the genetic skin disorder Epidermolysis Bullosa. Vedder is also an ambassador for Global Citizen and the Vitalogy Foundation.
Athletes for a Cure is a fundraising and awareness program of the Prostate Cancer Foundation. The organization assists athletes in their quest to raise money for better treatments and a cure for prostate cancer. Athletes for a Cure was founded in 2006.
The Mautner Project is a national organization in the United States dedicated to improve the health of lesbians and other women who partner with women (WPW). It was founded in 1990 and it is based in Washington, D.C. It provides direct services, engages in community outreach and health education campaigns, trains health care professionals to deliver culturally competent care, and raises awareness of lesbian and WPW health issues.
Breast cancer awareness is an effort to raise awareness and reduce the stigma of breast cancer through education about screening, symptoms, and treatment. Supporters hope that greater knowledge will lead to earlier detection of breast cancer, which is associated with higher long-term survival rates, and that money raised for breast cancer will produce a reliable, permanent cure.
Hockey Fights Cancer is a charitable initiative of the US and Canadian National Hockey League (NHL) and the National Hockey League Players Association (NHLPA) dedicated to raising money and awareness toward cancer research. It was founded in 1998 as an outgrowth of a similar program instituted by the Tampa Bay Lightning after former player John Cullen made a brief NHL comeback after suffering from non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The program had raised over US$14 million according to its Web site in 2015.
Jillian Helene Weinkauf Costello, better known simply as Jill Costello, was an American athlete and activist for lung cancer awareness and research. She is best known for leading the California Golden Bears crew as varsity coxswain while fighting against stage IV lung cancer. Costello was an otherwise healthy, 21-year-old non-smoker, when she was diagnosed with cancer. In 2011 she was inducted into both the NCAA Hall of Fame and the UC Berkeley Golden Bears Hall of Fame.
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Skate4Cancer combined 14 bands and varying styles of skateboarding competition to raise awareness of cancer prevention in youth at The Forks on May 16, 2009.
The band list continues to grow as Sunday's Skate 4 Cancer concert draws closer.
{{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)Meredith Dejonge, 25, alleges that Kirilow befriended local groups and recruited volunteers to help her organize events and benefit concerts, and even convinced a cancer awareness organization -Skate 4 Cancer -to fly her to Disney World to fulfill what she said was a dying wish.
Skate4Cancer's involvement with Ms. Kirilow was based solely on fulfilling what the organization believed to be a legitimate final wish from a terminally ill individual.
Skate4Cancer has recently become aware of the allegations of fraud brought against Ms. Ashley Kirilow, and her not-for-profit organization known as "Change For A Cure". These allegations have shocked and saddened both Skate4Cancer's founder Rob Dyer, as well as the entire Skate4Cancer community.
Last year, Dyer took his Skate4Cancer cause outside North American borders for the first time, traveling to New Zealand and Australia. He had completed the New Zealand leg and was midway through Australia when tragedy struck.
Skate4Cancer is a non-profit organization formed in 2003 by Rob Dyer. After losing multiple loved ones to cancer in a matter of months — including his mother and best friend — Dyer decided to skate from his Newmarket, Ont. home to Los Angeles to raise awareness of the deadly disease.