In less than a month, she pulled together a team of more than 50 people from UPHS Urology -- employees, physicians and patients alike. She wrote dozens of letters to vendors, requesting donations she could give the team’s top fundraisers, and the responses were overwhelmingly generous: 6ABC donated cups, shirts and duffle bags with its logo. The Flyers donated signed pictures and a puck. She received donations from radio stations, a month of parking from Park and Ride, concert tickets, an autographed football from Temple University, and many others. In fact she received so much that everyone who raised over $100 received a gift.
A telephone call to event co-chair Jamie Apody of Channel 6 led to a pre-event news story that Penn Urology had started a team and that some members had cared for Papa at HUP during his fight to beat prostate cancer. The broadcast included interviews with Bottoms as well as urologist Tom Guzzo, MD, who stressed the awareness component of the walk/run during the interview. “There are people who will be at this run this weekend who maybe weren’t thinking about prostate cancer but will now get screened.”
A bigger surprise awaited the Penn Urology team on the day of the race. “Jim Gardner [of Channel 6] stopped a bunch of us and took photos,” Bottoms said, smiling. “He is so cute!”
In addition to more than doubling the team’s original fundraising goal of $1,000, the team effort drew the office together and lifted morale. “Everyone was so excited to be there,” she said. “It gave us a really good feeling to help.”
Bottoms has already started planning for next year’s Run 4 Life, with hopes to create an even bigger team and raise more money for the worthwhile cause. “I do it for our patients.”
Jim Gardner of 6ABC not only stopped to talk with Penn’s team, but a photo, above left, of some of its members: (L. to r.): Becky Bannan, Anna Bottoms, David Lee, MD, Patricia Hetherington, Frank Monahan, and Kelly Monahan.
