Washington Cancer Institute at Washington Hospital Center invites you to its second FREE Living Well with Cancer seminar of the year featuring Alice Matthews Beers, BSN, an oncology nurse and expert on cancer patient recovery. Beers will provide information and guidance on how to communicate effectively with your doctors and other health care providers about post-treatment issues. She will also address the importance of a healthy emotional recovery by discussing how to recognize and manage anxiety, depression and fatigue. The event will be held on Saturday, April 19, from 9 a.m. to Noon at the National Rehabilitation Hospital Auditorium located on the Washington Hospital Center campus, 102 Irving St., NW, Washington, DC 20010. To register, please call 202-877-DOCS (3627) or register online at www.whcenter.org/livingwell

Sarah Berger, Red Devils volunteer, is recruiting women runners to represent the Red Devils on June 22, 2008 in the Baltimore Women’s Classic, the country’s second-oldest women’s-only race whose mission is “promoting fitness and healthy living among all women while increasing awareness of women’s health issues.”

Having spent the past year losing 40 pounds and getting in shape by walking and running, Sarah is ready to take on the challenge of running three miles in public…in devil horns! Her only personal goal on race-day is to finish the course (hopefully before sunset), and she invites any women who support The Red Devils’ mission to join her – runners and walkers alike.

Registration is $25. For more information, and to register as part of team “The Red Devils” (captain Sarah Berger), visit www.baltimorewomensclassic.com. You can also contact Sarah by phone at 443-742-3946 or email her at tobias_isaac@yahoo.com.

Baltimore, MD January 30, 2008 – Believe it or not, some people in Baltimore are making something this Sunday, Feb. 3 OTHER than Super Bowl Chili. Toni Killefer, her friends and friends of friends are gathering for a quilting open house from 1:00 – 5:00 p.m., turning out chemo quilts for an excellent cause: The Red Devils, a fledgling Baltimore charity that recently made it into O’s Guide to Life, The Best of O, The Oprah Magazine, a new book featuring a collection of “more than 100 of my favorite articles from (my magazine over the past seven years),” according to Winfrey.

Founded in 2002, The Red Devils is a Baltimore-based non-profit that funds services to improve the quality of life for Maryland breast cancer patients and their families. Through partners, The Red Devils provides such services as transportation to and from medical appointments; housecleaning; buying groceries and preparing meals; help with prescription drug co-payments; and even stress-reducing massages and acupuncture.

Killefer first learned about The Red Devils through membership in The Baltimore Heritage Quilters Guild. The Guild selected The Red Devils in 2004 and 2006 as the designated charity for a quilt-making project that donated the hand-crafted works-of-art to Red Devils patients undergoing chemotherapy. The Chemo Quilt Open House slated at Killefer’s home this Sunday is not an official Guild event, but a number of its members will participate in this party that has extra special meaning for Killefer.

Last April, Killefer was diagnosed with breast cancer and found out first hand how the “chemo quilts” raise spirits and convey a sense of love sent by unknown individuals sewing their good thoughts and recovery wishes right into their fabric creations.

“I took a ‘chemo quilt’ every time I went to my chemo treatments,” said Killefer, who lives with her three children - ages 9, 7 and 4, plus two dogs – in the Pikesville area near St. Timothy’s School. She is a part-time teacher at The School of the Redeemer Parish Day School off North Charles Street, has completed chemo and now is finishing a radiation regimen at Johns Hopkins at Greenspring Station. Read the rest of this entry »

On May 17, the Red Hat Riders are sponsoring a trail ride at The League of Maryland Horsemen in Marriottsville, MD to benefit The Red Devils. The Red Hat Riders are a small group of Maryland gals who like to trail ride together. They have worked with the Maryland Horse Council and Maryland trail riding clubs to organize activities that foster good trail stewardship and to encourage camaraderie and communication in the trail riding community. They are teaming up with TROT (Trail Riders Of Today), the League of Maryland Horsemen, the Maryland Horse Council Trails and Greenways Committee, and the Grey Mares of Pennsylvania to bring trail riders an opportunity to have fun and make a difference in the lives of those who are living with breast cancer.

There’s no fee to ride, but riders are encouraged to collect pledges to support their ride. Click here to register, support a rider or make a general donation. For more information call 410.549.9344 or email trailtoacure@gmail.com.

Enjoy sweets and bubbly while you shop for the perfect Valentine’s Day gift! And, feel good about it!
Saturday, February 9th, 2008
11am-6pm

The following merchants will donate a portion of February 9th sales to The Red Devils:
Atwater’s • Bratt Décor • Ceriello Fine Italian Foods • Cloud 9 Clothing • Daedalus Books & Music • Grand Cru • Greg’s Bagels • Ikan Seafood & Sushi • Lilac Bijoux • Matava Too • Nouveau Contemporary Goods • Ryan’s Daughter Simply Noted • Sweet Papaya • Taste Restaurant • Techlab Photo Imaging • The House Downtown • The Peanut Shoppe

Make dinner reservations for you and someone special at R’s Americantina in Stevensville for February 11. Come in and enjoy all your kiln-fired Mexican and American favorites like enchiladas, cantina flats, burgers, and ribs. While you’re dining, R’s Americantina will be donating a portion from all dinner sales that evening to The Red Devils.

R’s Americantina is located at 410 Thompson Creek Mall, Stevensville. To make reservations, call 410.643.7700. To see their full menu selections, go to www.RSAMERICANTINA.com.

Come with someone you love for someone you love.

Washington Cancer Institute at Washington Hospital Center invites you to the first in our series of FREE Living Well with Cancer seminars to be held throughout 2008. The first event, Navigating Life after Cancer: A Road Map for the “New Normal” will feature two speakers – both well-respected experts in working with cancer patients and the challenges they face. Brenda Hubbard, RN, an oncology nurse and patient educator at Washington Cancer Institute at Washington Hospital Center, will address some of the physical, psychological and spiritual issues that come with a cancer diagnosis. Patricia Smith, an attorney, will focus on navigating employment and insurance issues. The event will be held on Saturday, January 26, from 8 to 11:30 a.m. at the National Rehabilitation Hospital Auditorium located on the Washington Hospital Center campus, 102 Irving St., NW, Washington, DC 20010. To register, please call 202-877-DOCS (3627) or register online at www.whcenter.org

Mutation associated with Jewish women; screening urged for other ethnic groups
By Jonathan Bor | Sun reporter
December 26, 2007

A gene mutation strongly identified with Jewish breast cancer patients has also turned up in a small but significant percentage of Hispanic patients, scientists are reporting today.

In their study of more than 3,000 women with the disease, scientists also found a surprisingly high prevalence among young black women with breast cancer.

The finding has led some oncologists to suggest genetic screening for patients of different ethnic groups, because carriers have a greater chance of recurrence and can pass that risk to their daughters.

Read more: www.baltimoresun.com

Copyright © 2007, The Baltimore Sun

Area Middle School Students Practice “Tis Better to Give Than to Receive,” Raise Funds for The Red Devils, a Fledgling Baltimore Non-Profit That’s Made Oprah Winfrey’s “Favorite Stories” List

Students at Baltimore’s William Lemmel Middle School lived the adage - ‘Tis Better to Give Than to Receive - raising funds for a local non-profit group that just made Oprah Winfrey’s O’s Guide to Life, The Best of O, The Oprah Magazine: The Red Devils.

According to one of the school’s guidance counselors, Lynn Dorsey, the youngsters held a walk earlier this fall to collect dollars for The Red Devils as part of the school’s commitment to voluntarism.

Said Dorsey, “This is the third year we’ve done a walk for charity. This time, I wanted the monies raised to go directly to the people helped by that non-profit. I went online, found The Red Devils, and knew the monies we collected would immediately benefit the people in need.”

Although the day dawned frigid, rainy and windy, the students persevered, with about 75 children completing the approximately two - mile walk along with seven adult chaperones. The walk started at the school’s 2801 N. Dukeland Street location, with participants walking down Liberty Heights to Mondawmin Mall, to Coppin State University and back to the middle school. Each walker paid a $2.00 registration fee and was encouraged to solicit donations from friends and family.

A special ceremony acknowledging the students’ efforts recently was held at the school. The Red Devils’ Executive Director Jan Wilson accepted a check for $584.00 and praised the youngsters for their philanthropy.

Top fund-raisers for the school were as follows:
Lashawn Henderson - $196.00
Aaron Jones - $73.00
Tanika Brown - $53
Donneka Brown - $36

Wilson, armed with The Red Devils signature bags of goodies that included “devil ducks,” “devil horns” and beads, congratulated student leaders.

Pictured front row L-R: Tanika Brown, Donneka Brown, Lashawn Henderson and Aaron Jones. Back row L-R: Lynn Dorsey (guidance counselor) and Quianna M. Cooker (principal).

The Red Devils Featured in “O’s Guide to Life, The Best of O, The Oprah Magazine”

The Red Devils – has made it into O’s Guide to Life, The Best of O, The Oprah Magazine, a new book featuring a collection of “more than 100 of my favorite articles from (my magazine),” according to Winfrey.

In a letter to readers on the back cover Winfrey discusses the book’s mission: “to give you a greatest-hits collection in one knockout of a book you can reach for whenever you find yourself craving another perspective, a few laughs, a little expert advice, a great big dream, or maybe just a terrific conversation with an old friend.”

Available at local bookstores, the book retails for $29.95. It’s a perfect gift to help navigate the New Year as well as learn about The Red Devils, a non-profit group founded in 2002 to improve the quality of life for Maryland breast cancer patients and their families. The group’s name was inspired by The Red Devil to Hell with Cancer–and Back, a book by breast cancer survivor Katherine Russell Rich, who got her title from chemo drugs, that are bright red and nicknamed the “Red Devil.”

Rich’s book caught the eye of Winfrey, who then learned about The Red Devils and featured the group in the October 2006 issue of her magazine.

Through partners, The Red Devils provides such services as transportation to and from medical appointments, housecleaning, delivering meals and drug co-payment help.

There are plenty of giving opportunities for people who want to support The Red Devils in 2008. Registration for the group’s biggest fund-raiser, the annual Red Devils Heart and Sole Stroll, begins online after January 1 for the “fun walk for the entire family” scheduled for the morning of Sunday, June 8 at Columbia’s Centennial Park.

On February 9 from 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. is the group’s “Sweet Shopping” fundraiser at Belvedere Square, located at York Road and Belvedere Ave. Merchants will donate a portion of the day’s proceeds to The Red Devils.