Going To Bat For Gary

Parents and friends hold Woodbury Days raffle for local coach Gary Rinehart, who was recently diagnosed with cancer.

There were hundreds of booths at Woodbury Days. This one was a little different. When beloved Woodbury little league coach Gary Rinehart was diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer in July, his friends and parents of his players wanted to rally together to support him and his family. The group decided to hold a fundraising booth at Woodbury Days. “To have people give back like they did, it’s incredible,” Rinehart said. “It just proves how incredible friendship is.” Rinehart has lived in Woodbury for 11 years and is the director of the Woodbury Athletic Association Travel Baseball Tournament, WALL Baseball Tournament and the WAA Youth Wrestling director. He also coaches baseball for Northwestern College. They’re all volunteer positions. The …

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Relay For Life Surpasses Fundraising Goal

Books close Aug. 31, which means another few thousand dollars could be tacked on to the $235,862 already raised—more than $5,000 ahead of the goal.

As of the closing ceremonies on Saturday morning, the Relay For Life of South Washington County had raised more than $235,862. The goal this year was $230,000 and the books don’t officially close until Aug. 31. Organizers expect to raise an additional $10,000 to $15,000, said Mara Mayberry, co-chair of the event held over the weekend at East Ridge High School in Woodbury. Mayberry provided Patch with a few figures from the event: The top fundraising teams as of Saturday morning overall were: "As a planning committee, we are so grateful for the tremendous turnout of the community who visited Relay For Life South Washington County," Mayberry said. "They helped us reach and exceed our fundraising goals." Donations are still accepted through …

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Video: Relay For Life In Woodbury

Thousands turned out for the event Friday and Saturday at East Ridge High School.

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Royals, Wolfpack Deliver a Proper 'CHECK'

Woodbury, Park boys hockey teams raise money for childhood cancer research before Royals claim 3-1 victory on Saturday night.

The Woodbury boys hockey team claimed a season sweep over Park with a 3-1 win on Saturday night at the Bielenberg Sports Center. However, the evening's most important result came before the contest began as the Royals and Wolfpack announced that they had raised a combined $3,015 for childhood cancer research. The two squads have competed in a friendly off-ice competition to accumulate funds for CHECK (Coaches Helping Eliminate Cancer in Kids) for the past four seasons. Fans of both teams are encouraged to donate whatever they can in the days leading up to the contest between the two intra-district squads. "We've given over $10,000 over the last four years," Woodbury coach Wes Bolin said. "That's the most in the state." For the fourth year …

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In Woodbury: ‘Celebrate, Remember, Fight Back’

Relay for Life gears up for June event at East Ridge High School.

Volunteers in bright orange shirts that read “Celebrate, Remember, Fight Back” filled the confines of the The Woodbury 10 Theatre for the American Cancer Society’s kick-off Relay for Life captain’s event Tuesday night. The event was held to recap last year’s Relay for Life—which was held at East Ridge High School and raised more than $218,000—and to begin preparing for this year’s relay, which will also take place at East Ridge June 3-4. The organizational meeting was primarily for team captains, but anyone was welcome to attend. Last year’s Woodbury Relay for Life was the largest moneymaker for the American Cancer Society in the state. The event asks teams to run/walk around a track for 24 hours (relay style) and secure pledges for their …

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Mara Mayberry

9:10 am on Thursday, February 3, 2011

A great event will be even better with the community coming out in force to fight back against cancer!   more ›

Woodwinds Steps Up Services for Cancer Patients

The Woodbury health center now offers more on-site oncologists and services, and plans to ask the state for permission to move a linear accelerator—used for radiation therapy—to Woodwinds from St. John's Hospital.

Woodwinds Health Campus on Tuesday unveiled its latest initiative to fight cancer. The Woodbury hospital, part of the HealthEast system, has expanded its offerings for cancer patients with new facilities for chemotherapy and an increase in on-site oncologists. The number of people with cancer in the Woodbury area is growing faster than it is elsewhere, mostly due to an aging population and increased early detection, said Les Stern, vice president of specialty physicians with HealthEast. With its holistic care model—which includes acupressure, music therapy and other alternative-medicine options—Woodwinds was well suited for the expanded care, Stern said. The new program, called "Cancer Care," will also mean shorter drives for many …

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