Thanks to the vision and generosity of Gail Garcelon and her family foundation, the Glenn Garcelon Foundation, the ABTA has a new financial assistance program for brain tumor patients and their families. Read on to learn what inspired Gail and how you can make a difference…
Tell us about your background and why you started the Glenn Garcelon Foundation?
Gail Garcelon: You know, losing Glenn—my husband of 36 years—was devastating, even though we knew from the day of his GBM diagnosis that we would lose him. But we were fortunate to have him with us for three and half years after the diagnosis!
We have two daughters and starting the foundation was a way for us to get through our grief. We wanted to do something to honor Glenn’s life. He was a big humanitarian. He volunteered with many nonprofits and worked for FEMA for 30 years, assisting disaster victims. He dedicated his whole life to helping other people, so we decided that this would be a way for us to truly honor his giving spirit.
Why did you decide to focus the foundation on financial and emotional assistance?
GG: Well, when we started preparing the paperwork for the IRS, the foundation was geared towards brain tumor research. But then the girls and I started talking… we realized we had spent so much time in hospitals—there were so many appointments for those three-plus years—and we met so many people who were suffering financial devastation.
We were very fortunate, Glenn and I had both retired, we had amazing pensions, we had fantastic insurance. We didn’t have to deal with financial problems, but we met people every single day who were dealing with it. So, I started doing some research on other organizations that help brain tumor patients financially, and I could only find two! So, we changed our mission, because we knew there was a need and it wasn’t being met.
What brought you to partner with the ABTA specifically?
GG: As a small nonprofit our workload was becoming too much. Due to the amount of applications we were receiving, we had very little time to focus on fundraising. With funds, we wouldn’t be able to help brain tumor patients. We were drawn to the ABTA because of its patient support services. I felt that the ABTA was in tune with the needs of individual patients. So I reached out to Ralph DeVitto (former ABTA President & CEO) about forming a partnership. It’s been kind of a win-win: we get the help we need to process the applications, so we can focus on fundraising and the ABTA are now able to fund grants directly to the patients that need them most.
What would you say to encourage those who need to apply to the ABTA Financial Assistance Program?
GG: When you have a brain tumor diagnosis, it puts so much stress on your life. And that’s compounded by the financial devastation that patients are also faced with—if they can no longer work, if their spouse has to be the caregiver and quit a job, if they can’t drive to their appointments – it just snowballs. And we are here to relieve some of that stress from their lives.
I would encourage them to complete the application process and get the help that they need with their day-to-day living expenses, so that they can focus on the brain tumor diagnosis. Families should not have to worry about paying rent for a month or paying utilities or the car payment or whatever their need might be when under such stress.
“Generosity is part of everyone’s life, and if someone has the capacity to be generous towards this cause, it will truly make a difference in the lives of brain tumor patients.”
Where do you want to see your partnership with the ABTA go in the future?
GG: I really want to see us helping more patients. In my heart, I am hoping that more funding will become available, so the ABTA can help more patients. That’s my hope— that this program just continues to grow.
What would you say to encourage someone to make a gift towards the Financial Assistance Program?
GG: Generosity is part of everyone’s life. If someone has the capacity to be generous towards this cause, it will truly make a difference in the lives of brain tumor patients and what they’re going through. I encourage people to support our mission and to give hope to brain tumor patients.
How You Can Help
In its inaugural year, the ABTA Financial Assistance Program, supported by the Glenn Garcelon Fund provided financial assistance grants to over 100 families. You can help us reach more families facing financial devastation with your gift now (Select “Financial Assistance” when asked where you’d like your donation to go).
