Around Town

Watertown Native’s Event Raises $275K for Cancer Research

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A Shot for Life Founder & CEO Mike Slonina, left, and Dr. Will Curry, Chief Medical Officer of Massachusetts General Hospital post with Boston Celtics Mascot, Lucky the Leprechaun. (Photo by Betsy Cullen/A Shot For Life)

On Saturday, a fundraiser run by a Watertown native raised more than $275,000 to support research into the development of cancer treatments. Mike Slonina, a Watertown native, started A Shot for Life in 2017, and since its inception, through a number of sports-centric initiatives including the Gauntlet, the organization has raised more than $1.1 million in support of cancer research at Mass General. 

At this weekend’s Gauntlet, which took place at the Starland Sportsplex in Hanover and was open to all skill levels, hundreds of players participated in shifts to ensure that basketball drills and sprints were ongoing for 24 hours – from noon Saturday to noon Sunday. https://www.watertownmanews.com/2022/01/20/lacrosse-games-to-raise-funds-to-fight-cancer-organized-by-non-profit-led-by-watertown-resident/

Around Town

Watertown Woman Cutting Off Hair in Memory of Aunt Lost to Cancer

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Audrey Woods will be cutting off her hair to raise money for cancer research and to honor her aunt. Watertown’s Audrey Woods will be cutting off two-feet of hair to raise money for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund in an effort to beat the disease that took her aunt’s life. Woods will cut off hair she has been growing for 5 years on Oct. 1, 2021, in memory of her aunt, Jane T. Sabin, who died from cancer in 2018

“Three years ago I lost my beloved Aunt Janie to breast cancer. The hole she left in our lives is huge and aching and can never be filled,” Woods wrote on her fundraising page.

Cancer Research

Watertown Man and 2 Sons Will Buzz Their Hair Off to Fight Childhood Cancer

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Special guest, Rob Gronkowski, and hundreds of brave men, women, and kids – including a Watertown man and his sons – will unite to buzz their heads for pediatric cancer awareness and raise funds for the charity, One Mission. The eighth Annual Buzz Off will take place on Sunday, June 4, at Gillette Stadium and the money raised through Buzz Off participation will help fund exciting programs for kids fighting cancer at local hospitals. Watertown’s Watertown’s Ken and his sons Bryce and Ethan will buzz their heads to raise funds for pediatric cancer programs.
“One Mission does whatever to get it takes to get kids and families through cancer treatment, said Ashley Haseotes, Founder of One Mission. “Our goal is to make life in the hospital less lonely and stressful, provide some joy during a time of fear and uncertainty, and give patients and their families the support they need to get through the emotional and unexpected financial challenges of treatment.”
Proceeds from the Gillette Buzz Off event will fund One Mission programs at Boston Children’s Hospital, the Jimmy Fund Clinic at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island. “I’m so excited to be part of the One Mission Buzz Off again this year! One Mission helps so many kids going through a really tough time,” says Buzzee and Tight End Rob Gronkowski.