Fighting cancer can often be a roll of the dice. But one Sweet Home group used the classic game of chance to help a local woman take the edge off her battle with breast cancer.
Wanda Jones was named the recipient of all funds raised during this year’s Bodacious Babes Boobie Bunco Event, held Friday Nov. 17. The event involved 130 people paying to play rounds of Bunco, a dice game, as well as raffling prizes.
At the Bunco event, community members raised $3,966 for Jones through table fees and raffle prizes. But the Sweet Home community helped raise even more than that.
While Jones continued her battle with breast cancer over the last two years, Bodacious Babes organizer Gina Riley has been working in secret to raise money for Jones. It started with a January clothing sales event at Sweet Home High School, which brought in $500. A Mother’s Day craft vendor event at the high school netted $600. An October movie night at the Rio garnered $700, before November’s Holiday Bazaar Raffle collected another $500.
All told, Jones received the largest single amount given out by Bodacious Babes: $6,266. And every penny is up to Jones to spend. Riley said the recipients get to use it on themselves, pointing out that Jones had to cancel a vacation to British Columbia because of her treatment.
This year’s Bunco event marked the 20th anniversary of Bodacious Babes rallying community support for a local cancer patient. Each year, the group convenes a seven-person panel to pick out the recipient. It’s then kept a secret as the group carries out their fundraising events for the year.