Community backs medical education, research and care

Local fundraising events raise nearly $380,000 for academic health sciences center

More than 60 fundraising events were organized by members of the Worcester and Central Massachusetts communities in FY2017 to support various programs at UMass Chan Medical School and UMass Memorial Health Care. The funds raised by these events—which included golf tournaments; triathlons; running relays; 5Ks; marathons and fun-walks; car and motorcycle races, and even rubber duck races; karaoke and BBQ competitions; and yoga—totaled nearly $380,000. Community-driven fundraising events like these play a critical role in driving pioneering education, research and patient care, and heightening community awareness of the need for clinical and scientific medical advances.

Areas that benefited substantially from these community-based efforts include:

Breast cancer research and patient care – 14 events raised more than $87,000

Pancreatic cancer research and care – 12 events raised more than $90,000

UMass ALS Cellucci Fund, benefiting ALS research – Five events, including the 2017 Boston Marathon, raised more than $70,000

UMass Memorial Children’s Medical Center – 20 events raised nearly $88,000 for:

• • • Child Life Program
    • Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
    • Pediatric cancer research and care

In addition, 10 events raised more than $41,000 to support:

• • • Research and care for cancer, colorectal cancer, diabetes and stroke
    • Transplant Patient Assistance Fund

View a complete list of FY2017 community events here. If you would like to create a fundraiser to support UMass Chan Medical School and/ or UMass Memorial, we can help. Contact Community Outreach Coordinator Katie Friend (katie.friend@umassmed.edu, 508-856-8554).