15th Annual Men for the Cure Surpasses $2 Million for UCHealth

When guests sat down to dinner at this year’s Men for the Cure, a “gentlemen only” fundraiser, many picked up the daintily-wrapped items on their table and looked positively perplexed. Laughing emcee Ed Greene announced: “Guys, those are bath salts to take home to your significant others.” You could hear the “Oh-hh”s all over the room.

Ed Greene (left) and Joe Theismann take audience questions.

With cigars, steak dinner, adult beverages and an iconic NFL quarterback as keynote speaker, more than 600 supporters made a beeline to XJet at Centennial Airport on Thursday, Sept. 24, to enjoy the ideal guys’ night out. It was made even better as 100 percent of the proceeds went to breast-cancer treatment and research at UCHealth – University of Colorado Hospital. With this year’s event, Men for the Cure has raised more than $2 million in its 15-year history to help fight breast cancer on a local level.

The evening began with a silent auction full of sports memorabilia, trips and restaurant outings, along with a cigars-and-cocktails reception that spilled outside, adjacent to airport runways, with a food truck, cigar bar and whiskey samples. Men had the opportunity to enter a drawing to win either a 2015 BMW R1200 or a 2016 Polaris Slingshot motorcycle, donated by Gail, Dave and event chair Dave Liniger, Jr. The Pink Life Saver, UCHealth’s mobile mammography van was onsite, and event décor plus guest attire were accented with breast-cancer-awareness pink. After a spectacular Colorado sunset, guests made their way inside to chow on sliced tenderloin.

Cigars ruled at the outdoor reception.

After dessert, Elizabeth Concordia, UCHealth’s president and CEO, spoke briefly and specifically about where and how donations are used, and breast-cancer survivor, radio personality Murphy Houston, told the crowd his story. He also emphasized his mission to spread the word about early detection for men and women alike. After a live auction emceed by Greene, former all-pro Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann took the stage with gusto. His dynamic presentation included a riveting account of his well-known, career-ending injury from a hit by Lawrence Taylor on Monday Night Football in 1985. He also took time to applaud guests for their support of Men for the Cure. Greene, joined onstage by event co-founder Jeff Thompson, told the crowd how the event started and how gratifying it felt when the UCHealth – University of Colorado Hospital Breast Center was renamed the Diane O’Connor Thompson Breast Center in 2007.

Men for the Cure event founder Jeff Thompson

Men for the Cure began in 2000 after Diane O’Connor Thompson lost her battle with breast cancer. Greene and Diane’s husband Jeff Thompson, part of a group of men who regularly had dinners together, decided something good should come out of that tragic event. To honor Thompson’s wife, they expanded their dinner concept into a guys’ night out to raise funds for breast cancer treatment and research. Sharon Magness Blake came on board to help facilitate the event, and 15 years later it continues to draw support from men around the metro Denver area. For more information, please visit: UCH.thankyou4caring.org/menforthecure.

UCHealth’s “Pink Life Saver” mobile mammography van

The Diane O’Connor Thompson Breast Center, located on the Anschutz Medical Campus, is the only NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center in Colorado and the Rocky Mountain Region, and offers the most comprehensive, multidisciplinary care for breast-cancer treatment. During a single clinic visit, patients receive:
• Review of mammograms and other images by a breast radiologist
• Review of all biopsy and surgical material by a breast pathologist
• Consultation with a surgical oncologist
• Consultation with a medical oncologist
• Consultation with a radiation oncologist

UCH is the only hospital in Colorado where 3-D mammography is the standard of care (every mammogram, every time). The 3-D mammograms can detect invasive breast cancer 40 percent sooner than traditional methods, and reduce the number of false positives.For more information, please visit: UCHealth.org.