Photo L to R: Beverly Berkowitz, Gerald Yass and Linda Moses
November 17 2021 – The Pap Corps Champions for Cancer Research is proud to announce the Dr. Kevin Berkowitz Memorial End of Year Giving Campaign will raise research funds for three different types of cancer: pediatric sarcoma, multiple myeloma and melanoma. These funds will be directed towards groundbreaking research at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. The giving challenge for melanoma is being augmented by a generous $100,000 matching gift provided by the Yass family. The campaign will run through February 28. To learn more visit www.thepapcorps.org.
“As we enter into the season of giving, we are honored to once again be uniting our over 20,000 members around a specific fundraising effort,” said Sally Berenzweig, CEO.
The cancers selected this year are pediatric sarcoma, which includes a number of cancers which involve tumors growing from cells in a child’s bone or soft tissue; multiple myeloma, a cancer that forms in the type of white blood cell called a plasma cell; and melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, with over 106,00 diagnoses in 2021.
“We are honored that long-time Pap Corps member, Gerald Yass has once again made a tremendous commitment to our organization by establishing a matching grant for the melanoma portion of this campaign,” said Susan Dinter, Chair.
Gerald Yass established the Yass Discovery Fund for Collaborative Research at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center to focus on melanoma, in memory of his late wife. The funds raised from The Pap Corps’ End of Year Giving campaign will enhance the programs that are currently underway.
Dr. Kevin Berkowitz launched the end of year giving challenge in 2014, and after his passing, the campaign was continued in his honor. Each year, the nonprofit, which supports research for all types of cancers throughout the year, concentrates their end of year fundraising, earmarking the funds for a specific initiative.
“I am so proud of the tremendous success of The Pap Corps’ End of Year Giving campaign,” said Beverly Berkowitz, Officer-at-large. “Coming together to focus on targeted fundraising initiatives allows us to see our impact in a very tangible way.”
For more information about the organization’s history, fundraising initiatives and volunteer opportunities, please visit www.thepapcorps.org
About The Pap Corps:
Since its founding in 1952, The Pap Corps has donated more than $110 million to Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, including a historic $50 million pledge in 2016. The Pap Corps derives its name from Dr. George Papanicolaou, a pioneer in cytopathology and early cancer detection, who introduced the world to the revolutionary ‘Pap’ test. A small group of women began the organization to support his efforts, and over the decades it has grown into an organization of over 20,000 men and women, in over 50 chapters, who raise funds to support research for all types of cancers.
