Retail Therapy--There is Indeed Such a Thing!

If you glanced through the 2006 Annual Report that arrived in your mailbox last week, you caught a glimpse of one of the most wonderful things about the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation: Each of the 1,906 funds under the Community Foundation's umbrella is unique, established to pursue the charitable causes that are important to the individual, family, business or nonprofit organization that established the fund.

This week, it is particularly appropriate to highlight one of those 1,906 funds, established by a donor who observed five years ago that nowhere in Kansas City is the transition from cancer patient to cancer survivor addressed in the form of a survivorship care plan. Thanks to the vision and passion of this donor, who established the Back in the Swing Fund at the Community Foundation, that is changing.

The story began over five years ago, when fighting breast cancer required Barbara Unell to dedicate all of her mental and physical energy to getting her life back. But when she completed her treatment, she realized there were no resources to help her get back into the swing of life. Inspiration came when she read the New York Times article "The News Was Bad...I Went to Bendel's," written by breast cancer survivor Ellen Tien, who said shopping gave her hope that life moves forward. Retail therapy struck a chord with Barbara and became the cornerstone of the Back in the Swing fundraiser.

The fundraiser started with a group of stores in one shopping plaza selling Back in the Swing shopping cards, which gave customers a 20 percent discount on merchandise. Now, as the 5th annual Back in the Swing Retail Therapy event gets underway this Wednesday, nearly 900 stores are participating! Click here to find out where to purchase your Back in the Swing Retail Therapy Shopping Card for just $25, entitling you to discounts and special offers at all participating stores across the metropolitan area. Since its inception, the Back in the Swing Fund has raised over $1 million for cancer survivorship programs. Click here to read about the impact of these dollars right here in Kansas City, improving the quality of life in this community we all care so much about. And enjoy that retail therapy! I always KNEW shopping was good for you!