Cancer Crusaders will honor 11 cancer survivors who are active in the community during their Celebration of Life Luncheon on Oct. 11.
The 2024 Cancer Crusaders' honorees are Earlene Karl Ally, Carencro, a patient navigator at the Cancer Center of Acadiana in Lafayette; Joy Ann Broggi, Covington, a volunteer with Compassion That Compels and Relay for Life; Carolyn Giarratano Escher, Covington, a member of the Ladies of the Shield at Brother Martin;
Brenda Lyons Gillen, River Ridge, active in the Philanthropic Education Organization Sisterhood; Susan Happel, Chalmette, a member of the Catholic Daughters of America; Isabella Renee Meyer, Chalmette, a volunteer for What You Give Will Grow; Ann deGeneres Olvany, Kenner, a member of SMART (Special Military Active Recreational Travelers) that raises money for Fisher House (the military version of the Ronald McDonald House);
Debbie Hall Perrone, Metairie, past president of the Council of Catholic School Cooperative Clubs and the St. Elizabeth's Guild; John Perrone Jr., Metairie, a volunteer at Second Harvest Food Bank; Dom M. Richard, Metairie, a deacon at St. Catherine of Siena Church; and Valerie Kemper Simons, Montgomery, Alabama, a certified Mental Health First Aid Educator.
The event will be held at the New Orleans Marriott, 555 Canal St. in New Orleans. Doors open at 10 a.m. Gregory Ricks and Maddie Kerth will be the masters of ceremonies. Entertainment will feature Kenny Kerth, Bionic Babes and Gordon Towell of the Loyola University School of Music.
Ticket start at $110 per person. Reservations may be made at through Oct. 4 at www.bidpal.net/cancercrusaders. No payments will be accepted at the door.
Cancer Crusaders, a local, nonprofit, all-volunteer organization established in 1976 to raise money for cancer research in the New Orleans area, has donated more than $5 million to LSU Health Sciences Center and Tulane Cancer Center for cancer research.