Our Campus Celebrity for this week is Kaelyn Gates, a senior on campus that is one of the key members of Carroll CAN, the new cancer advocacy group on campus. Carroll CAN is the replacement for Relay for Life, and their event this year is Streak-A-Thon, a dance marathon happening on March 29.
Were you involved in Relay For Life?
I was not apart of the Relay for Life committee here at JCU. However, my mom had participated in Relay for as long as I can remember. I participated in Relay my freshman, sophomore and junior year at John Carroll through a team with my sorority.
How/When did Carroll CAN form?
Carroll CAN is the brain child of Steph Fair. She has worked hand in hand with our advisor, Maura Jochum, to ensure that JCU still had an organization after Relay left that had a sole purpose of helping those in our community affected by cancer. Steph has been working tirelessly on this over the summer to get the organization up and going starting in Fall 2013.
What is your position in the organization?
I am the Lend-A-Hand Committee Chair. I am basically in charge of community outreach. Our committee has worked on a couple events including Give a Heart, Take a Heart (might have to check if thats the name I can’t remember which way it goes) with Kappa Delta and Lambda Chi Alpha to provide 100 chemo care packages to University Hospitals and 50 to the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute. We are also working on ways to create a support group on campus for those of us who have been affected by cancer.
Who else is involved in the leadership of the organization?
Maura Jochum is our advisor. Steph Fair is our president. Amanda Preston is a Financial Officer. Raechel Boyko is our Raise Funds Committee Chair. Taylor Whisler is our Raise Awareness Committee Chair. And of course, we wouldn’t be able to do anything without the committees that serve under us.
How long have you been planning the dance marathon?
We have been planning this dance marathon since December 2013. We have taken a lot of steps, including choosing which event we want to become our big annual event to replace relay. There were a lot of great ideas contributed by the committee members and ultimately we chose a dance marathon!
Why did you choose the American Cancer Society, the Taussig Center, and The Gathering Place to receive the proceeds?
Carroll CAN aims to raise funds, raise awareness, and lend a hand to those in our community affected by cancer. As a committee we decided that we wanted three organizations that reflected our mission. Raise Funds money will go to Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute. Raise Awareness money will go to the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Action Network which works as a cancer advocacy group to ensure that cancer issues are a national priority. My committee’s funds for Lend A Hand are going to The Gathering Place, a local organization that works as a support place for families and individuals affected by cancer. They provide support groups, art therapy, and other ways to help families get through difficult times.
