Hanging
By Sandy Fails
tough
Allan Ivy
Breast cancer can be a rough ride, but it helps having the record-breaking Cattlemen’s Days Tough Enough To Wear Pink on your team. Interior designer Heidi Sherratt Bogart didn’t plan on becoming the executive director of Gunnison’s startlingly successful Tough Enough To Wear Pink (TETWP). But breast cancer had affected her life from an early age; both her mother and grandmother had it. And as a TETWP volunteer, she’d seen the generosity shown to people when they needed it most. So when the board two years ago asked Heidi to lead the growing organization, “I couldn’t say no,” she said. “It’s my ‘feed-my soul’ job.” More than 300 Tough Enough To Wear Pink chapters have formed since TETWP was created in 2004 to raise money and awareness for breast cancer via rodeo competitors and fans. The Cattlemen’s Days TETWP in Gunnison is the number one fundraiser in the country, garnering almost $2 million. Dean Dillon, famed singer/songwriter who has written hits for George Strait and other greats, pumped up the campaign by performing and recruiting fellow music legends for the summer Singer/Songwriter TETWP Concert & Auction in Mt. Crested Butte. He also performs in the winter Mountain High Music Festival, for which TETWP is a charity partner along with the Adaptive Sports Center. Dean’s motivation for supporting breast cancer patients is simple: “I want to ease the pain.” The Cattlemen’s Days TETWP rodeo is also critical in raising money and awareness, as are other community fundraisers, like the Pink in the Rink women’s hockey tournament. 14
“We’ve been far more successful than anyone ever thought possible,” Heidi said. “Dean Dillon is a major reason, but it’s also this strong and passionate community.” The money raised by each TETWP stays local, so Gunnison has been able to launch an ambitious campaign to make Gunnison Valley Health the top rural hospital in the U.S. for breast cancer care. One goal: bring services here so patients don’t have to leave the valley for diagnosis or treatment. “We want people to be comfortable in their homes while they’re navigating cancer, with the emotional support of their family and friends,” Heidi said. Two pieces of that puzzle fell into place with the arrival of Dr. Steph Timothy, a breast surgical specialist who performs biopsies, mastectomies and related surgeries, and Dr. Jennifer Butterfield, a plastic surgeon who does reconstructive procedures. People can get genetic testing, mammograms, ultrasound diagnostics and chemotherapy here, and the next purchase will be a 3D Tomosynthesis machine for better radiology. Breast cancer patients must still travel for treatments like radiation. After watching people struggle to get to appointments in Denver or other cities, the TETWP board recently purchased “Tuffy the Transportation Truck.” Patients can borrow the 2016 Ram 1500 or even ask for someone to drive them. In 2017, TETWP helped Gunnison Valley Health hire a patient navigator, a Registered Nurse who can help all cancer patients through diagnosis and treatment, from insurance paperwork to appointment scheduling to wound care. Last year, Friends of Pink gave more than $35,000 to breast cancer patients who needed assistance, including covering car and mortgage payments, groceries, gas and medical bills. They also started “Make It a Great Day!”, which gives patients coupons to use at the WellBeing