JAMESTOWN — The 100 attendees of Designer Purse Bingo raised $5,000 for cancer patients. Of those funds, $2,500 support purchasing gas and restaurant gift cards for patients at Jamestown Regional Medical Center through the Barb & Curt Togstad C.A.R.E. fund.
The remaining $2,500 supported a Jamestown boy. Doctors diagnosed 7-year-old Colby Schrenk with leukemia in February.
“This gift means so much to our family. We are grateful,” said Lisa Schrenk, Colby’s mother.
Barb and Curt Togstad created the Continue Aiding Recipients Affected by Cancer Evermore (C.A.R.E.) Endowment Fund with JRMC Foundation on July 20, 2016. The fund’s goal is to support those individuals emotionally and financially through their journey. The couple created the fund in memory of Barb’s parents, Donald A. and Mildred E. Olson). Donald, 56, and Mildred, 54, died in July and September of 1980, respectively, from cancer.
“Barb is a pillar of giving in this community," said Lisa Jackson, JRMC Foundation director. "She is so kind and so generous. Her good will has impacted hundreds of people in this region.”
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In seven years, the fund has supported 263 people.
“My mission since then is to help cancer patients,” Barb Togstad said. “I think of my parents all the time. That’s why it is so important to me.”
Togstad hopes to raise $100,000 by 2026, in celebration of Mildred’s 100th birthday. With the funds raised from the Designer Purse Bingo event, the Togstads have raised nearly $50,000 toward that goal. Barb also works part time, with the money earned benefitting the C.A.R.E. Fund.
The Togstad C.A.R.E. Fund is an endowment that will continue to aid cancer patients indefinitely. Endowments to the JRMC Foundation keep the principal amount intact while using the investment income for charitable efforts.
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