How lived experiences with cancer inspire change through philanthropy.
By Olivia Piché
Albertans know the hardships of cancer — one in two will receive a cancer diagnosis in their lifetime. But cancer care is progressing. New cutting-edge clinical trials offer promising results, patients are getting diagnosed earlier, leading to earlier treatment, and many of those facing cancer live longer and healthier lives. This is thanks to exceptional medical professionals but also, significantly, to generous donors who, often because of their personal experiences with cancer, help fund critical advancements to create a brighter future in cancer care.
Here, meet some Albertans helping Albertans living with cancer.
A mission to help Albertans facing cancer: Kelly Gardiner
Cancer touches everyone. Kelly Gardiner knows this all too well — it’s why she’s an Alberta Cancer Foundation donor. In 2018, she lost her dad to bladder cancer, and within the last four years, one of her sisters was diagnosed with cervical cancer, another with breast cancer and another had skin cancer removed. Gardiner herself had skin cancer removed, too.
But it was her experience driving her niece Laurel to and from chemotherapy appointments in 2002 that really shaped her desire to get involved in cancer care. Gardiner was with Laurel every step of the way through her cancer journey, driving her two hours from Edson to the Cross Cancer Institute (Cross) in Edmonton every week.
“I know first-hand how hard it is to make the trip to and from major centres for treatments. Not everyone has a person or people in their lives who can afford the time or money to make that trip weekly. I feel blessed that I was able to help with that for numerous people in my life,” says Gardiner.
Following chemotherapy, Gardiner took Laurel for radiation treatment. Unfortunately, Laurel passed nine months later. “I will always remember how well we were treated at the Cross — how positive all the doctors and nurses were,” Gardiner affirms.
Although Gardiner is no stranger to the hardships cancer can bring, she believes in the progress made through research and improving cancer journeys through patient-care programs. In 2022, Gardiner started making yearly donations to the Cross through the Alberta Cancer Foundation.
Her donations support research and clinical trials at the Cross and the Alberta Cancer Foundation’s Patient Financial Assistance Program. The program supports patients in need of help with expenses related to their care, like travel costs for patients living in rural Alberta having to drive to appointments in bigger centres — something Gardiner passionately supports because of her experience with Laurel.
Every dollar counts towards the progress of cancer care, and Gardiner knows this — she plans to support cancer research and transportation programs for as long as she can.
“I feel grateful that I am in a position financially to donate money to a cause that touches many lives, mine included,” she says. “I have great hope that with donations, we can push cancer research to a place of evolution, that diagnoses come sooner and treatments become more precise and easier for patients.”
A family legacy: The Savard family
Donald and Donna Savard were always involved in their community. From creating scholarships for youth who are active in their communities to supporting charity events and making various donations, giving back was central to both their characters. After Donald passed away from lung cancer in 2009, Donna was inspired to honour him through the Savard Family Memorial Fund, supporting the Alberta Cancer Foundation.
Following Donna’s passing in 2020, her children, Kim and Shane, didn’t skip a beat and became stewards of the fund, continuing the giving legacy their parents had started.
“It was important to my mom to honour my dad and their lives together, and it’s important to us to honour our parents by keeping it going,” says Shane.
Donald and Donna were very humble — their generous philanthropy was unknown to most, even those within their closest circles, and it has had a tremendous impact. Their legacy continues to help improve the lives of Albertans.
Donna started making yearly donations to the Alberta Cancer Foundation in 2011, and in 2020, when she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, she made a donation to her doctor to help advance pancreatic cancer research. The funds helped support Dr. Jennifer Spratlin’s research and trials in pancreatic cancer treatments, based out of the Cross Cancer Institute in Edmonton.
Beyond dollars, Donald and Donna’s legacy is rooted in the family values they’ve passed on. Today, Kim and Shane’s children are also involved in the memorial fund’s decisions, establishing that legacy of giving back within their own families. “This is the way we run our families.
This is our culture. This is who we are. It’s about building this beyond just my mom and dad, beyond Shane and I, but for our kids and their kids. That’s the long-term hope,” says Kim. “Our parents would be thrilled to see their grandkids as part of this process now and the decisions we’ve made.”
Kim, Shane and their families continue to direct a portion of the Savard Family Memorial Fund to the Alberta Cancer Foundation to honour Donald and Donna’s commitment to the organization and support Albertans facing cancer. They recognize the great care both of their parents received and share hope for more advancements in the future of cancer care.
“As we become older, there are more and more friends and family who are diagnosed with cancer, and to find a cure would be amazing,” says Shane. “If these donations made a change or a difference, not just in our family, but in somebody else’s family, that would be awesome.”
Steadfast support: Dean Heuman
“You have cancer.” Three words no one wants to hear, but many, unfortunately, do. Dean Heuman says having family members hear those words was part of the push that got him involved, for the past 22 years, with the Glenn Anderson Day of Golf.
A community-driven golf tournament held in Edmonton, the Glenn Anderson Day of Golf supports the Cross Cancer Institute (Cross) and was spurred by former Edmonton Oiler Glenn Anderson, who began supporting the Cross in 1985. During Anderson’s 1986-87 hockey season, Acklands Grainger and Gasland Oil pledged $1,000 to the Cross for every goal Anderson scored. The companies donated a combined total of $100,000 at the end of that season, leading to the annual golf event that has raised more than $20 million so far.
This year, the tournament celebrated 40 years — a testament to the steadfast support it takes to run and grow a fundraiser of this size for decades. While Heuman’s personal experiences with cancer keep him on the event committee, other driving factors for him are supporting the advancements in cancer care and the unbelievable generosity of Edmontonians.
“In the time frame that I’ve been involved — never mind the 40 years that this tournament has been happening — this tournament has had a measurable effect on how long and how well people live from the time they are told they have cancer. Nothing is more rewarding than that.”
The Glenn Anderson Day of Golf committee’s focus is to help lead and establish revolutionary, innovative solutions in cancer care. It takes a risk mentality, explains Heuman. “The business people and entrepreneurs involved think, ’What big steps can we take? What’s something that would make an enormous difference?’ It can be research, ideas, clinical trials or equipment.”
One example is the game-changing Linac-MR machine, a medical tool that currently provides precision radiotherapy to Albertans facing cancer. The tournament raised over $1 million to help fund the Linac-MR back in 2012, when the technology was still in a research and development stage.
Heuman has watched the progress not only in cancer care but also in the tournament itself. The dollars have increased through the decades, with some ebbs and flows, but the enthusiasm, passion and determination to build a brighter future have been steadily climbing. This year’s tournament has so far raised nearly $1 million towards the $2.5 million goal to equip the CAR T-cell lab at the Cross.
“What an amazing accomplishment to come through 40 years and to see this as not the end but as a foundation to move forward into the future,” affirms Heuman. “I hope that the tournament continues to have this entrepreneurial, reach-for-the-stars attitude. I hope that it continues to have moments where it funds moonshots, if you will, or aspirational research and treatments so that we’re going above and beyond.”
