Leukemia Cup: Celebrating 25 years of service

One hundred twenty-five sailors and their guests gathered October 27-29 to participate in the annual “Fantasy Sail with Gary Jobson” experience featuring a Harbor 20 Regatta in Annapolis, MD. This year’s event was extra special as it celebrated Gary Jobson’s 25 years of service as National Chair of the Leukemia Cup Regattas in advance of his transitioning into an emeritus role starting in January 2018.

The Fantasy Sail is an annual gathering of the nation’s top Leukemia Cup Regatta fundraisers and includes medical updates on the great progress being made by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in finding cures for blood and other cancers.

Also, discussions focus on the ways that participants, their team members, and sponsoring yacht clubs can raise additional funds to further accelerate blood cancer cures and improve the quality of life for patients and their families.

Since its start in Alabama in 1988, the Leukemia Cup Regatta series has raised over $62 million for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, funding research, developing cures and providing support to thousands of patient s and their families.

Having traveled to 429 Leukemia Cup Regattas, kickoff parties and Fantasy Sails over the years on behalf of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Jobson will always hold the Leukemia Cup Regatta campaign cause close to his heart.

“Before I was diagnosed with lymphoma in 2003 – ten years after I became the National Chairman of the Leukemia Cup campaign – I never thought that all of the funds that we had been raising to help patients and their families would one day develop treatments to save my life.”

To view an interview with Gary Jobson about his 25 years of service as the National Chair of the Leukemia Cup Regatta… click here.

The Harbor 20 races were won by Meadeor with owners Jim and Rachel Mead hosting Larry Weinhoff and Frank Giampoli, and flying a flag in honor of Rachel’s sister, Molly, who lost her fight against blood cancer. Bob Kottler skippered Tru Blu to two second-place finishes and a second-place overall with Southern Yacht Club friends Guy and Pam Brierre, and J. Miles Reidy on board. Gary Jobson skippered Misty to a third-place overall with Jim and Judy Wilson and Donald Steiner on board.

After the Harbor 20 Regatta, a “Salute to Gary Jobson” dinner was held, with over 250 attendees, with tributes from star sailors Steve Benjamin, Terry Hutchinson and Matt Rutherford, and Dr. Aaron Rapoport, an LLS-funded researcher who managed Jobson’s treatment for lymphoma and serves as the Director of the Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The Jobson Cup, presented to the top fundraising Leukemia Cup each year, was awarded to the San Francisco Yacht Club for an 11th consecutive year. The San Francisco Leukemia Cup campaign raised over $760,000.

The top three national individual fundraisers in 2017 were Chris Kostanecki of the San Francisco YC at $137,400, John Doerr, also of the San Francisco YC at $100,000 and Tracy Howard of Columbia YC in Chicago, raising $87,146.

The top three 2017 national fundraising teams were Zephyr, based out of the Southern YC, raising $146,810, with team members Bob Kottler, J. Miles Reidy, Holly Callia and Dave Erwin; with Team Tartan, Washington Sailing Marina in Alexandria, VA raising $104,893, with team members Chris and Gary McGraw, and Team EYC from the Eastport YC, Annapolis Leukemia Cup Regatta, raising $68,400, with team members Clare Vanderbeek and Jack Morkan.

The 2017 Fantasy Sail attendees were the first to hear the news of the 2018 location: the Southern Yacht Club in New Orleans November 30-December 2, 2018. To learn more about the Leukemia Cup Regatta, visit www.leukemiacup.org or email regatta@lls.org

Source: Guy P. Brierre