Winter 2024
By Kayla McMahon
In 2009, Laura Smith launched a fundraiser with her friend Jill, who had recently been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Together, they selected the name girlygirl P.A.R.T.S. 5K/Walk for Ovarian Cancer, with the acronym representing their fundraising mission—Prescreening Awareness Required To Silence ovarian cancer.
Laura and many other dedicated committee members including Trish Cundiff and Erica Kuenzel have kept Jill’s legacy alive by continuing to host this fundraiser annually since she passed away in 2015. They recently celebrated a new milestone—raising over $1 million in support of ovarian cancer research at Dana-Farber under the direction of Ursula Matulonis, MD—and are committed to continuing this effort until outcomes are improved for all ovarian cancer patients.