Ride, After-Party To Support Breast Cancer Survivors

By Chelsea Peifer – Town Lively – Engle Printing

As a five-year breast cancer survivor, Bainbridge resident Kim Coy is all too familiar with the way that medical expenses continue to add up after insurance coverage ends. “A survivor has another chapter in an unwritten book that changes almost daily,” Coy said. “Some things change temporarily; others are permanent changes that have to be adjusted and accepted.”

Treatment side effects like neuropathy, lymphedema, heat flashes, scars, fatigue, pain, swelling, hair loss, and depression can linger for a while or last forever. Regardless of the intensity or duration, Coy points out that these things are often not covered by insurance or other resources. “These (things) are very real to us survivors,” she shared. “We live with these ailments on a daily basis.”

Last year she and several friends held a fundraiser to help raise funds to support breast cancer survivors. This year, they are teaming up with the Perfect Match Boutique, a durable medical equipment supplier that specializes in meeting the needs of women after breast surgery. “Most hospitals in the area send patients to Perfect Match,” Coy explained. The money raised at this year’s fundraiser will go directly toward helping breast cancer survivors who need assistance purchasing items such as compression sleeves, prosthesis and other medical garments and accessories for after surgery and treatments.

“Our goal is to help as many breast cancer survivors with the financial burdens of this disease,” Coy said. “My friends pulled me through all of this. They wouldn’t let me hunker down in a hole.”

The second annual Ta Ta Rebels Breast Cancer Survivors Event will take place on Saturday, Oct. 7. The event will include a motorcycle ride, with registration from noon to 2 p.m. at the Elizabethtown American Legion Post 329, 240 N. Hanover St., Elizabethtown. Maps will be provided for the approximately one-hour ride, which will conclude at the Delaches Fishing Association, 5450 Elizabethtown Road, Palmyra. “It’s going to be a ‘follow the dot’ ride, at your own pace,” said Coy.

The after-party will kick off at 2 p.m. at the Delaches Fishing Association and will feature food, music, door prizes, and giveaways. There is a set donation per person to participate in the ride or event.

Meatballs, chicken corn soup, hot dogs and sauerkraut, and homemade side dishes and desserts will be on the menu, and a local business will donate beverages. Bainbridge resident Ernie “Only” Kresge will serve as disc jockey for the day. Door prizes and giveaway items will include electronics, oil changes and motorcycle inspections, jewelry, golf passes, themed baskets, and plenty of gift cards to area restaurants, attractions, and businesses.

Ta Ta Rebels T-shirts will also be available to purchase at the event.

In the case of rain, the motorcycle ride will be canceled but the after-party will still be held. Preregistration for either component is not necessary. Individuals who cannot attend the ride and event but would still like to make a financial contribution to the Ta Ta Rebels Breast Inc. – Survivors Raise Hope may email tatarebels247@gmail.com or call 717-368-2586 for more information.

Mount Joy resident Barb Kaylor (left) and Bainbridge resident Kim Coy are planning the second annual Ta Ta Rebels Inc – Survivors Raise Hope Event on Oct. 7. A motorcycle ride will take off from Elizabethtown American Legion Post 329 and conclude at the Delaches Fishing Association in Palmyra. The public is invited to take part in the ride or just the after-party.

Read the Story by Chelsea Peifer here.
Town Lively Article