Do a Fundraiser

Corvettes for Colorectal Cancer

In honor of her husband’s brave battle with colorectal cancer and love of Corvettes, Joan Forgione started “Corvettes for Colorectal Cancer” in 2010. Joan’s husband, Pat Forgione, lost his battle in February 2010 after three years with the disease. In order to support Pat’s goal to help others with this cancer, Joan made some calls and turned his wishes into a reality.

On Saturday, October 2nd the Tri-State Corvette Club welcomed the Forgione Family to put on a Colon Cancer Alliance fundraiser at their annual Fall Corvette Show. Joan was able to set up a table to raise awareness and funds to support the fight against the 2nd leading cancer killer. Corvette owners are an extremely close knit family; it was not a surprise that they were immediately humbled and anxious to support the CCA. Joan along with her two daughters, brother and future son in law put on their CCA shirts and went to work on fundraising. Not only was Pat a 1st place winner in the Corvette Shows, he was a friend to all who attended each year.  “A truly great man…” one owner said at the CCA table as he flipped through the photo albums.

The event brought many people from the surrounding Tri-state area. Some drove 4 hours and others 15 minutes to attend the show. By 10 am the entire venue was filled with pristine looking Corvettes, in every color and year. 

The day commenced with an announcement to all in honor of Pat and colorectal cancer. Owners and attendees nodded in silence with great respect, they passed by two BLUE tables set up solely for colon cancer awareness. Balloons, ribbons and photo albums graced the tables. Thanks to the CCA, attendees were given pamphlets on screenings, “Ask me why I’m blue” bands, pins, and posters.   

Joan educated everyone who approached her on how important it is to be screened. Her husband’s story was a basis for many conversations as he was only 49 when diagnosed with a symptomless tumor. The average age of attendees at the Corvette show was between 45 and 62 years old. 

The event was a great success and many were asking how they could help in the future. In total $522.00 were raised in only a few hours. This event served as a springboard for many more fundraising efforts by the Forgione Family.

Return