Designer purses carry a hearty price tag. In this case, all those dollars benefitted a good cause.
The 100 attendees of Designer Purse Bingo raised $5,000 for cancer patients. Of those funds, $2,500 support purchasing gas and restaurant gift cards for patients at Jamestown Regional Medical Center, through the Barb & Curt Togstad C.A.R.E. fund.
The Togstads created the Continue Aiding Recipients Affected by Cancer Evermore (C.A.R.E.) Endowment Fund with JRMC Foundation on July 20, 2016 – her mother’s 90th birthday. The fund’s goal is to support those individuals emotionally and financially through their journey. The couple created the fund in memory of Barb’s parents (Donald A. and Mildred E. Olson). Donald and Mildred died in July and September of 1980, respectively – both from cancer. At their deaths, Donald was 56 and Mildred, 54. Barb was only 27 years old.
“Barb is a pillar of giving in this community. She is so kind and so generous. Her goodwill has impacted hundreds of people in this region,” said JRMC Foundation Director Lisa Jackson.
In seven years, the fund has supported 263 people.
“My mission since then is to help cancer patients,” Togstad said. “I think of my parents all the time. That’s why it is so important to me.”
Each month, the JRMC Cancer Center provides more than 200 infusions to individuals from 40 communities. In nearly four years, the cancer center has saved more than 500,000 miles of travel.
Barb hopes to raise $100,000 by 2026, in celebration of Mildred’s 100th birthday. That’s double what she’d planned, and she is already more than halfway there. With the funds raised from the Designer Purse Bingo event, the Togstads have raised nearly $50,000 toward that goal.
“I hope my parents are proud of me,” she said.
The Togstad C.A.R.E. Fund is truly “evermore” in that the endowment will continue to aid cancer patients indefinitely.
Endowments to the JRMC Foundation keep the principal amount intact while using the investment income for charitable efforts. That means the C.A.R.E. fund and endowments like it last forever. JRMC uses the resulting investment income each year for purposes designated by the donor.
In addition to the proceeds raised at the purse bingo event, Barb continues to work part-time. Every dollar she earns benefits the C.A.R.E. fund.
“What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It’s what difference we have made to the lives of others. That determines the significance of the life we lead. Giving is not just about making a donation; it is about making a difference,” she said.
The remaining $2,500 supported a Jamestown boy. Doctors diagnosed 7-year-old Colby Schrenk with leukemia in February.
“This gift means so much to our family. We are grateful,” said Lisa Schrenk, Colby’s mother.
LEARN MORE