March 2011, 4 months after our founding date, our Founder Leigh Martyn shaved her head to raise thousands for cancer research.

September 2020, Leigh is prepared to do it all again in the name of Childhood Cancers research.

13th September update!

Leigh’s long time friend Jodie has decided that she’s going to shave her head too so we can only hope double the heads double the fundraising! Thank you Jodie!!

With an aim to do the head shave on 14th November 2020, we are looking to raise, at a minimum, $5,000 for Childhood Cancers Research. You can donate via credit card by clicking on this link or by direct bank deposit to our account below.

If you have a strong desire to be the actual head shaver, contact Leigh at Leigh@playforacure.com.au and put in your offer. You must be available to do the head shave at Downey Park, Windsor Qld. You must also, be kind

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Like any event fundraiser there are always so many to thanks so let’s get straight into it:

• Panthers committee (for choosing our charity to fundraise for)
• Brisbane Softball (special call out to Michelle and Dave Waller)
• Pink Panther committee (special shout out to Kerry and Wayne)
• Panthers club members for supporting the day (special shout out to Alyssa & Shianne)
• Members of other BSA clubs who participated in the day (and looked so fine!)
• Miki and Stealers softball for your hefty donations
• #teamp4ac supporters for again getting behind our event
• Jane and InCamera for the amazing pics from the day – check them out here
• Rhegan for buying and making the fantastic B1 shirts for the day. We are thinking that perhaps next year a bigger order may be on the cards!

And of course the following who donated goods to make up our amazing raffle prizes:

• Kylie and KJH Artworks for the beautiful ‘Strong Spirits’ print and softball;
• Bunnings Warehouse Wynnum;
• Stacey Porter;
• Blue Bean Coffee; and
• Sandy Lewis

On the day we held a BBQ along with selling a host of pink goodies. Thank you to our bakers for not only cooking the deliciousness but also for donating the food (special shout to to Tracy (and Charlotte), Kyla and Kerry (again)).

Thanks to you Lyssy for the pretty hair bands. They proved to be a real hit!

Thank you Fred and a special shout out to GE Mallan Bulk Meats for the snags and cut up onions. Who doesn’t love a snag and onion on bread! A huge shout out to Dan for being our Masterchef, especially when you were in the middle of your ‘challenge’. We’re not quite sure how you did it but of course we are incredibly grateful!

Woolworths Wynnum, Springfield and Greenbank for donating gift cards allowing us to cover the costs of any foods we purchased for the day.

It was a very long day but so worth it because the final amount raised on Pink Panther Day 3.0 was…..……… Over $4000 raised for cancer research. An absolutely amazing result and we cannot wait until PPD 4.0!

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We are going all out and flooding Downey Park with PINK on the 23rd November, 2019. Pink socks, pink cupcakes, pink, pink, pink! We are also hosting a BBQ and will be selling pink wristbands, pink cupcakes and coconut ice. There will be raffles and money boards and we hope to see the other BSA clubs joining us for what will be a fun day!

Of course, being the small volunteer run charity we are, without celebrity or social reach, nothing can be achieved without the support of our incredibly staunch, kind and generous supporters. So, a massive thanks to the following for your contribution to the day:

• Brisbane Softball Association
• Panthers members – raaaarrrr
• Kylie Hill from KJH Artworks for her stunning artwork
• Bunnings Manly West
• Blue Bean Mobile Coffee
• Australian softball captain Stacey Porter
• 3 time Olympian – Sandy Lewis

So what is the raffle prizes I hear you ask? The list below is the order in which the draw will be conducted (live on our facebook page on the 23rd) with the winners contacted to organise collection.

• KJH Artworks Print – Strong Spirits
• KJH Artworks softball – Strong Spirits
• Bunnings Voucher
• Inaugural Summer Slam Panthers playing top signed by Australian and Panthers captain, Stacey Porter
• Blue Bean Coffee Pack
• 2008 Beijing Olympics flag signed by the Aussie Spirit

Kylie’s artwork is so stunning, we thought you should know more about it and the lady behind the art (the print and the ball).

Kylie is a proud Kalkadoon/Waanyi woman from Far North Qld Mount Isa. Her language is the Kalkatunga Language.

Strong Spirits: ‘When our ancestors are there to take us back home to the Dreamtime’

Meaning / Interpretation: The middle dots represents the Dreamtime. The star like dots are our loved ones who have passed on. The white dots with the circles around them are our loved ones who are fighting cancer right now. The spirit Kuu Creatures are watching over our loved ones (Kuu in Kylie’s language means water).

We are sure you will agree her work is beautiful and would look beautiful wherever you chose to put it, if you were lucky enough to win! Come along to our day on the 23rd and help us make this our best fundraising calendar year ever!

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Below is what Richard has to say about his epic run. He says he is grateful to us and what we do. We are so humbled by this man, because we are grateful to HIM and for his effort in raising over $5000 for our charity through his 2 runs. This one alone, Rich raised $3707.24 – which is so thoroughly deserved. Please read on below to hear Richard’s final entry in his amazing Heysen 105 experience.

On the 26^th of October 2019 at 6am I stepped off to do something I never thought I could ever complete. I stepped off with the mindset that all I needed to do was 20kms at a time with the goal to complete 105kms of the infamous Heysen Trail. My first check point was 18km’s away, it was blowing a gale, which helped push me along and whilst it was hilly it seemed to be just a matter of crossing open paddocks… did not seem bad at all. My next checkpoint was another 18 km’s away, this was by far the most challenging 18kms of my run. It lead me through the Myponga national park which was made up of dense bush and up and down goat tracks. Whilst sprinting along the bottom of one of the hills a part of the fence caught, face first into the ground I hit the deck!! I was more than glad to see the tail end of Myponga. During the last 5kms of the second trail I was fighting my brain, arguing that I had what it takes to complete this run and I wasn’t a quitter!! Once I got to the checkpoint and saw my beautiful wife and awesome boys, I knew that I had to keep moving.

It was at this point, I could hear other people receiving calls from other runners to come collect them, 29 people dropped out that day!!! The next two check points where much the muchness, the hills got easier and my stubbornness had overtaken my ego and I had realised the only way I was going to successfully beat this track was if I actually walked and conserved my energy. The fourth check point saw me at the beginning of Kuitpo, a trail I have completed a couple of times so I was in familiar territory which was very helpful in what was to come next. The sun went down, I suddenly found myself in a pitch-black forest, with a head lamp and a GPS map on my phone. If it wasn’t for my phone and the ability to follow an arrow on the Heysen trail map I would still be out there. The last section was 21km’s, in the dark, in the bush…. I simply stuck to the idea, every step was a step closer!! At 2340 I crossed that line and completed 105kms on foot!! First thing out of my mouth to Stevi “Can we go home now?”

 I want to thank everyone that made a donation to Play for a Cure, you are the true heroes in this battle, the money that goes to these scientists that are making leaps and bounds towards a cure comes from your selfless pockets!! Thank you to my CoC and the boys I work with, I never would have ever been able to achieve this without the time and sacrifice I was given to train. A huge thank you to my partner in crime, Stevi has sat with me for days on end working out running plans, eating plans, arguing with my stubborn butt about what will work and that my way isn’t the right way. She also was at every check point to support me, feed me and encourage me when she could see I was ready to give up and definitely not in the mood to talk into a camera!! Thank you to the ADF Softball people, I would have never found P4AC without you guys and girls, and thank you for all of the fines which were donated to my run. Last but definitely not least thank you to Leigh and the Play for a Cure crew, for the great support and the selfless acts that each and every one of you make every day to fight the fight, When a Cure is found I guarantee it will be you that have had a hand in it!! My condolences and love to the Warde family, Grant’s Mom and Dad messaged me whilst I was at the highest peak on the run and I bawled my eyes out!! Followed by multiple messages from Grant’s brother pushing me along, love ya mate. Sharne, Danielle and Cameron (Grants wife and children) I am always here to support and help you. Thank you to my brother Grant, you sat on my shoulder during the whole run, I love you brother, I will always be your keeper!!

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Over 215 guests gathered for our 4th annual cancer research charity dinner at Victoria Park Golf Complex dressed in GOLD to raise funds for Childhood Cancers.

Our supporters dug deep and helped us raise in excess of $28,000 for Professor Bryan Day and his cancer research. We arrived at this outstanding amount through sponsorship, our raffle, silent and live auctions, as well as some donations. Of course we couldn’t have had such a successful evening with the following. To them we will continue to be eternally grateful.

SPONSORS

• Allmet Engineering
• Heit and Son
• Rosie’s Early Learning Centre
• Carrie Rose Consulting

DONORS

Victoria Carthew did an amazing job emceeing the event, Brian Kerle and Joyce Lester kept us entertained with their stories and Vintage and Taylor Wilton again rocked the house. We were fortunate to hear from Dr David Pattison who gave us an update on his world breaking prostate cancer research and how the money we raised and donated to his research has assisted him.

We then we got to hear from Professor Bryan Day and what he and his team are doing for paediatric brain cancer and why it is so vital for community support. We are thrilled to be able to be part of this very important community.

Helping Hand Group were great in providing staff and items for our auctions as well as donating a holiday. Simply outstanding! They certainly took the pressure of the board, and we are incredibly grateful for your support, especially Kimberley and Amelie. And of course to Bendigo Bank Wynnum who provided 2 eftpos machines – taking payments made that much easier! Shout out too to Kylie from Victoria Park Golf Complex – your support on the night was 2nd to none and to Amy and Lauren for all the ‘behind the scenes’ work.

Kingsley from Champions Sport Memorabilia was again on hand to provide us with some beautiful auction pieces as well as helping to set up our auction items. Thank you!

Danny and Madison Sport brought in 2 gold basketballs on the night and we were thrilled to be able to offer them on the night as a last minute item! Brian kindly offered a one on one session too! They were both snapped up, as you could imagine!

This year we were able to offer folks the chance to wear our logo as a pin. Thank you to Bill and Fresh Promotions Australia for providing these pins at a heavily discounted price, on top of donating a substantial amount! We love them and believe they are a quaint and unique way to promote our charity.

Jane once again donated a print and took photos of the evening. To see the photos from our evening, click here. Thanks Jane, once again the photos are fantastic!

Our night was a huge success, and we are extremely happy with the outcome. Thank you to everybody who made it the night it was. We say it all the time, because it’s true, but we couldn’t do it without each and everyone of you!

We will share further news when we make our donation to Professor Day but in the meantime, please save the date – 24th October, 2020 – our 10th birthday!

The post For the kids! appeared first on Play for a Cure Foundation.

So you may be wondering about the title then? It’s because, we did win! Team P4AC raised exactly $4000 over 3 days! And exactly that amount, $4000 will go to cancer research, so you see we did win

There are so many people to thank for helping us get to that amount (considering this was our first time not doing a raffle, this amount is amazing!!). First and foremost we have to thank Deb Prouten. For 10 years Deb and her team, the Toowoomba Warriors, have, instead of buying team gifts, donated to our charity. Deb has not just settled there either. For the last couple of years Deb has reached out to other participants asking they too get into the spirit and donate rather than purchase gifts. So this year, we are so pleased to be able to thank the following Ladies teams for their wonderful donations!

PMS

Mulgowie Angels

Champagne Ladies

Caboolture Warriors

Aunty Emma’s Moongalba

Dodgers

TAN Aunties

Diamond Divas

Brisbane Fusion

Hervey Bay Terrors

Playerz

Dolphin Wannabes and

Pinkie (cash and wine (for our dinner))

And then we had our very own Carrie Rose and her beautiful ChildCare Centre, Rosie’s Early Learning Centre donate. Carrie does this quietly every year and it bumps up the final figure quite nicely. We love having Carrie in our team, yes even more than her donations, but we will also be so grateful for them!

This year, Seeta and her business Anchor Blue Coffee asked if they could help in any way and ultimately decided to donate a percentage of all sales over the weekend. Well they must have had a boomer weekend (and we can understand why because the coffee (and service) was A+)) because Seeta donated over $800 to us. To say we were blown away is an understatement!

And then finally today we got the final amounts confirmed. Redcliffe Leagues Softball Association also reached out to us and offered the BBQ to us on the Saturday night (middle of the tournament). We of course, graciously accepted, and expected to make a few hundred dollars. Carrie, Redcliffe President, called on her friends, Petero and Bonnie Civoniceva, to help out and they were magnificent in running the BBQ along side the majority of our team. Then, Carrie and her team at RLSA decided to donate all of the proceeds and covered the costs of all the food meaning we ended up collecting a cool $700+ for our BBQ!

So as you can see, we had quite a few avenues for fundraising – all because of the generosity of our softball community. Thanks too to SQ for allowing us again to fundraise! And as per usual thank you to Rose from KR Sports Photos for all of the photos, including our team photo and to Jane for her photos too!

T o the team – thank you for playing again this year – our 10th year! Can you believe it!? We even went a bit retro with our uniform and we think it was our best one yet! The team looked amazing! Thanks to our coaches Jason and Sheridan

And to wrap it all up, we had the absolute pleasure to award our first ever Team P4AC Masters Life Memberships to Kelly and Jason, affectionately known as Smacka and Frecks. Husband and wife team, Smacka and Frecks have been involved in all 10 campaigns – truly amazing and we are so proud to have them be the first recipients and of course on our team.

The post We made it back to the GF, and won…. appeared first on Play for a Cure Foundation.

Not only was the weather perfect, the turnout, the way the game was played, the people, and the results were next level!

Before we do the drumroll on the final figure, there are so many people we would like to thank, because without them, the day would not have been in anyway the success that it was.

Paul Crooks started it last year and Justin Street followed on this year in reaching out to his contacts and bringing so many sponsors on board. These kind hearted individuals and companies are the reason we had our best ever result for our annual Charity Golf Day. In supporting us, we ask that you support them. The full list of our sponsors is below.

• Wayne MacDougall of Tip Top
• James Tulloch of Simmonds Lumber Group
• Garry and Jenny McNamara of Let Minnow Cafe
• Oliver Fenelon of James Hardie Australia
• Shane Heit (our number 1 sponsor across all events) from Allmet Engineering
• John Schwabe of Megabeam
• Paul McIntosh of BBC Digital
• Ben Drewett of Pacreo Pty Ltd
• Debbie Payne of Tilling Timber Pty Ltd
• Paul Rutledge of Gunnersen Timbermark
• Justin Street of Trade Builders Supplies
• Graham Cutts of Delf Hardware
• Graeme Buckley of Hume Doors and Timber
• Matt Colley of Wesbeam
• Shane Greene from ITI Australia

Once the golf is over, the fun part is the awards and the raffle. Thank you to our donors who ensured we were able to provide some fantastic prizes to our winners. Like our sponsors, we ask that you support our donors when you can.

• Sealife Mooloolaba
• Nudgee Golf Course
• Let Minnow Cafe
• Vittoria Coffee
• A place to meat – Toombul
• Gordon Cowell Air Conditioning
• John Downs Golf Tours

Our 2019 Golf Sponsors

Our 2019 Golf Day Donors

We are lucky enough to also have those supporters, that although they couldn’t make the day, made substantial donations. Thank you:

• Shane Heit from Heit and Sons
• BBC Digital
• RKW Innovations
• CSR Bradford
• Paul Crooks

And of course, a huge thank you to all of those who played golf and bought raffle tickets, each and every one of you contributed to the succesful day we had and we look forward to seeing you all back on the course next year.

Thanks too, to Peter of Nudgee Golf Club – nothing is too much trouble for you! To Wendy Dunstan for taking the day off work and helping Leigh out (and being good company). To Brian Debert and his Golf Blog for getting more folk on board and for awarding the best dressed with a golf goodies pack made up by your good self. A special shout out to Brett Matheson from Decon who flew up from Melbourne to attend the day and bought an awful lot of tickets (WOW)!

The winners of the Golf day are listed below.

• Overall winners – Brian Debert and Ross Cook (Score 61.75)
• 2nd place – Mark Barnett and Shane Krueger (Score 64.25)
• 3rd place – Brent Crooks and Gregory Street (Score 64.25)
• 4th place – Bob Milne and Glen Wolfenden (Score 64.5)
• Nearest to Pin (3rd hole) – Tas Henry (wins coolest name too)
• Nearest to Pin (14th hole) – Brent Crooks
• Longest drive women – Fiona Kenny
• Longest drive men – Ross Cook

In wrapping up, the author of this note would like to thank our board member Graham McColm for the extraordinary effort he put in to ensuring our day was a success. Macca you nailed it!

And finally – the real winner of the day is the cancer research scientists because our PROFIT for the day came in at….remembering that our 1st golf day we netted $3,432 and last year $9,012……..$9735 making this our most successful golf day yet. We are so incredibly grateful!

To see some photos from the day, click here. Like our Facebook page while there so you can keep updated with our events. Thank you again!

Now what to do? Oh yes, something about a special dinner we are holding in October. To learn more, click here We want this event to be our biggest and most successful fundraiser, ever! Will you join us?

The post 3rd times a charm…. appeared first on Play for a Cure Foundation.

Update 3rd October, 2019 – the month of the run!

Hello everyone, I am still training… it has been an interesting 8 months since my last update unfortunately with more lows than ups. My training has been plagued with different injuries, all of which I have overcome and seem to be tracking well. We are officially 23 Days away from the day and honestly I am freaking out. In saying that I have had a great training buddy, my wife who has been pushing me along and helping with researching different tactics with such a challenge and what is needed from a nutrition stand point. This coming long weekend I plan to head out and be on my feet for 12 hours give or take just to make sure I am capable of staying upright for such a long period of time. Along with that I will continue to knock out the smaller runs everyone sees me do every couple of days. In the lead up week I will begin to taper, maybe a couple of small weeks before the big day.

Now for the sad news…. On 26 August 2019, Grant Warde lost his battle with Cancer. He was an absolute awesome and genuine bloke who will be sorely missed by everyone that knew him. We had known each other probably since we were in nappies if not too long after. We went to different schools until High School, when I moved to the US he was the only mate I would call quite often. When I returned I was lucky enough to share a flat with him. After we all left Woomera and moved on with our lives we would still call and check on each other. It’s amazing how much we take life for granted, you really don’t realise how much you talked or messaged a person until they are no longer around. I will proudly take his memory and give my all through this challenge I have signed up for. I will also continue to support P4AC after the fact with their great determination in battling cancer!!!

Update from Richard 21/3/19

Hello everyone, training has officially kicked off and seems to be going well at this time. I was a bit worried that I would have to start off with low kilometres as I had a big break from running. I started in Feb, with the first being 5km’s, next 9, pushed it out to 14km’s and then just last week I managed 26km’s being the furthest training ran I have done thus far. To my surprise I have pulled up substantially well, the odd niggle here and there but at my age I was expecting more problems. I have changed my routine a little bit. I have completely cut out gels, trying to limit the amount of crap I pump into my body and go a more natural way. This may change as I push out my distances. I have started a strict regime of vitamins every night though which seems to be helping a lot with recovery. I am taking Vit E which strengthens my immune system and prevents me from getting sick after putting my body through so much stress. Magnesium, which prevents cramping and helps with the recovery process. Probiotics, One thing you want when running a long distance is a healthy gut especially when you are eating and moving at the same time, no one likes having to run into the bushes to relieve themselves. Fish Oil, prevents inflammation and helps also by reducing the recovery time. Calcium, obviously helps with bone density and strong bones which is crucial in any high impact sport. Vit D, helps with the absorption of Calcium and also provides the muscles with energy. Last but definitely not least Vit C, this is the most important one, it prevents, joint pain, tissue swelling, bone fragility, and slow recovery. Vitamin C also helps with warding off upper respiratory tract infections and acts as an antioxidant. All of these Vitamins definitely seem to be helping on my ability to push out the km’s. My next goal is to get my diet down pact and focus on what I will consume whilst running. My training week days won’t increase anymore at this time as between Uni, work and life I already am having to get up at 3am just to be able to push out 20+ km’s. hopefully though now that one of my boys sports have ended I will be free on at least one weekend day to push out the km’s even further.

So that is where I am at at this stage. 

As far as my mate goes. He is doing okay. Unfortunately they did miss out on a trial but he has re-started chemo and seems to be dealing with it okay, which as we all know is a very good sign at this stage.

Thank you so much for those that have donated at this point, big shout out at the boys and girls with ADF Softball they donated $300+ from fines for being naughty, actually surprised it wasn’t more! For those that haven’t, donations will be open up until October so please any chance you get donate what you can, it is tax deductible and is for a very important cause.

Richard is running again! This time 105kms!

Hello, some may remember me from last year when I decided to put myself through 58kms of torture. For those that don’t know me my name is Richard Hancock. I grew up in Woomera with an Australian and American Family. I also spent quite a few years in the USA later in life. I joined the RAAF at the age of 34 and have not looked back. Last year I was challenged by my brother-in-law to complete a 58km Trail run. When I made the choice to give it a go I decided to choose a charity to raise money for, a charity very close to my heart. That was where Play for a Cure came in, I had the opportunity to play ADF Softball the previous year and I was exposed to this great selfless charity. I have watched Play for a Cure donate thousands of dollars to many Cancer researchers that are making leaps and bounds in their research. Also I have lost a few mates to Cancer and have a Grandma still fighting the fight. After the gruelling run I made the announcement that I would never run again…

Hear from Richard and why he is doing what he is doing this year. Last year, clearly, a 57km run was not hard enough?!?!

A couple of months ago my best/childhood friend called me and told me that he esophageal cancer, but they were positive that it had been caught early. It was at this point that while I was questioning my own mortality I thought that there must be something that I can do. So of course I decided to double my distance and aim for the Heysen 105km Trail, raising money for Play for a Cure to keep fighting the fight. Since this choice I am saddened to say that, my mate had had chemo and they shrunk the tumor allowing for surgery. We were overjoyed thinking that it would all be over very soon and he would be cleared. Well upon opening him up they found that his stomach and pelvis was coated in cancer cells. He is now terminal fighting as much as he can to get as much out of life for his family. I will be training hard and pushing for donations all the way until October when the run takes place. Please give as much or as little as you can, you never know that dollar you donate may be the one that tips the scientist to a cure.

The post 105KM Heysen Trail #richard105 appeared first on Play for a Cure Foundation.

6th Annual P4AC Slowpitch Challenge

Join us for our 6th annual slowpitch challenge. 2018 was our best one yet, so we want to top that in 2019 and get as many teams as possible in order to present the best possible day.

Our event on facebook is where we will keep you updated with the latest. Scan the below QR code to be taken straight to our event (and while there, how about liking our page )

If you are keen, click here to download the 2019 Registration Form.

This link is for the team list you must provide and this link is all the rules and policies for the day.

LET’S PLAY FOR A CURE!

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The draw has been conducted and we would like to congratulate our winners.  Thank you to everybody who bought a ticket – you have helped make our 1st ever Xmas raffle a huge success!

If you would like to watch the draw as it unfolded, click on this link.  Thank you our great friend and supporter Helen for being on hand to conduct it with Leigh

If you are a little more old fashioned, the winners are below and we are pleased to advise that we raised over $3,500 in this raffle.  That’s over $3,500 all going to cancer research!

Fancy winning one or more of below? For just $2 you can, simply purchase your ticket online today and you will go into the draw. Upon checkout we will contact you to arrange payment and provide you with your ‘winning’ raffle ticket number.

100% of all funds raised will go towards cancer research and it will be drawn on the 9th December (just in time for you to spoil somebody with an Christmas present)

• 4 tickets to the Gold Coast Turf Club, in the Skyline Restaurant which includes entry, 4 course meal wine, Beer, basic Spirits champagne, Tea and coffee and a great day punting with thanks to Allmet Engineering
• Helloworld Travel night at Balfour Hotel New Farm – package includes Balfour Suite and Breakfast
• InCamera Framed Print
• Sea Life pass for 2 and swimming with the seals
• Sea Life Family day pass
• Cultivate Design Co. – homewares package
• Jungerboi art
• $100 Wynnum Fine Jewellers voucher
• $100 Beauty Emergency beauty package
• Massage voucher with Steve Bellchambers massage therapist
• Redlands lash and brow voucher
• Find your essence Soy Candles package
• Tupperware by Billie Ivanoski
• $50 Princess Charlotte Seafood Voucher
• $50 coles voucher
• $25 Let Minnow Cafe voucher

Thank you and good luck!

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