Volleyball & Metastatic Breast Cancer - Rick Dunetz & Ellen Dempsey, The Side-Out Foundation

Gary has a personal connection to today's episode. Both his daughters, like their mom, Maureen, played volleyball. Maureen was 6'1", so Gary married up quite literally and figuratively, and she was captain of her high school team, as were Gary's daughters Kyla and Katelyn. In 2016, Kyla, along with her teammates, started the Dig Pink® tradition and a few years later Katelyn, her younger sister, overlapped with her and then took over after Kyla graduated. That senior year and freshman year when both sisters played varsity together was pretty special. And it was the year that they were the fourth largest fundraising high school in the country, which is how Gary learned of the Side-Out Foundation and was invited to be its board chair.Ellen Dempsey, Executive DirectorEllen joined the Side-Out Foundation after a successful career in collegiate volleyball. Ellen’s teams participated in 11-NCAC Tournament Championships, 4-NCAA Tournaments, and she was named the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Coach of the Year, 4-times. “My family has been touched deeply by breast cancer. I’ve spent my career building and fostering relationships. In some way, It feels that my life’s work has been to prepare me for this next, most important chapter.Rick Dunetz, Founder & Chief Vision OfficerRick’s passion for volleyball and his dual role as a coach and caregiver, led him to create the Side-Out Foundation in honor of his mother, Gloria, who lived with stage IV breast cancer for 6 years before passing in 2010. Side-Out is now a leader in metastatic breast cancer research with the support of thousands of athletes, coaches, parents, and donors. Rick’s passion for volleyball has never waned and he still coaches at the school where it all started.About The Side-Out FoundationIn volleyball, “side-out” means regaining control of the ball. The Side-Out Foundation helps people with breast cancer regain control of their lives – and we started our fundraising efforts through the sport of volleyball. Our Executive Director and Founder, Rick Dunetz, was a high school volleyball coach when his mother, Gloria, was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer. Together he and his father, Bryant, decided to tell her story, and the story of all those with metastatic breast cancer, through dedicated volleyball matches across the U.S., where communities would rally and fundraise to support breast cancer research. This is how Dig Pink® was born – and it is still a central program of The Side-Out Foundation.