Cancer care funded by community fun run

Community event generates $100,000 for cancer care

When Beth Mather was asked to co-chair the Tails & Tatas Breast Cancer Awareness Run, she didn’t anticipate what the event would turn into with help from a community-based board of directors. With support from individuals in central Kentucky, over the last eight years the event has generated more than $100,000 to support cancer patients from diagnosis through treatments at Baptist Health Hardin.

“The first year I helped with this event, it was a small turn out, but over the years the community has rallied together to support our cause and help provide essential funding for projects that aren’t in the budget for local cancer patients,” Beth said. “Knowing that every penny goes towards cancer care for patients at Baptist Health Hardin is so meaningful. By coming together as a community, we are helping our neighbors, loved ones and even strangers to get the care they need without having to travel outside of what they consider home.”

The funding that has resulted from the event presented in partnership with the Swope Family of Dealerships, has been used in ways that maximize the impact for many patients with purchases ranging from vein finders to mammography robes.

“Through our work with Baptist Health Hardin, we realized that the Cancer Center didn’t have a bell to ring,” she said. “A bell in a cancer center is vital. It is used to create hope for patients and share that hope with others who may be experiencing similar situations. From finishing a series of taxing chemotherapy treatments or simply having a ‘normal’ blood count, the ability to ring a bell causes positivity that can ripple and impact those throughout an entire unit. The proceeds from Tails & Tatas allowed us to purchase a bell for the Cancer Center, and while it is for patients to celebrate their wins, personally, I consider it to be a big win for our event to be able to give back in that way.”

Beth finds it humbling to see the impact that is being made from the collaborative effort of community members who generously support the Tails & Tatas event. “To be able to support those walking through difficult journeys and allowing others the opportunity to support patients during times of fear and uncertainty is powerful.”

On October 12, the 2024 Tails & Tatas Breast Cancer Awareness 5k Run/Walk will be held in Elizabethtown and is open to the public to participate. For a $25 registration fee, community members are invited to participate in an event that isn’t only good for their health, but a chance to be a force for good. You can sign up to participate here.

“When we come together, the room for impact is limitless,” Beth said. “However big or small, it’s important to give back in ways that leave the world a better place than we found it. That’s how a community stays strong, warm and welcoming. By doing something as simple as joining a fun run, you may be helping someone undergoing the toughest battle of their life, and that is a difference worth making.”