Hi! I'm Kassia Hollis-Haynes. One Friday in June 2017, my husband, Geoff, was one of the 68 Canadians diagnosed with colon cancer every single day. At only 34 years old, this was a shock to us, as 93% of cases occur in adults over 50 . Geoff was rushed into emergency surgery to have the tumor and part of his large bowl removed. A few weeks later, he started his first rounds of chemo. This was all a whirlwind, as we had only gotten engaged a few weeks before. To go from such and emotional high to such a low so rapidly was dizzying. And to be honest, it continued to be a rollercoaster.
After his first round of chemo treatment, we were told his tumors were gone. But that didn't last long. Within a few months the cancer was back, and had spread to his lungs, and then shortly to his liver.
Over the four years Geoff lived with cancer, he faced two
additional bowel resections, a liver resection, a straddle pulmonary
embolism, a stay in cardiac ICU, learning to live with an ileostomy
and a nephrostomy, countless rounds of chemotherapy, immunotherapy
treatment and dozens of rounds of radiation treatments. Geoff’s
colon cancer progressed to stage IV. On November 8, 2021, I lost the
love of my life, my soulmate, my Geoff, to cancer. I have never been
so broken as I have been since he died.
But one of the things we held on to, through all the heartbreak
and pain and trauma, was our sense of humour. The only power we had
was to laugh in the face of cancer. To keep smiling and finding
happiness around it, through it. Cancer took a lot from us, but we
weren't about to let it take our laughter too.
And Geoff's life is a lot more than just a tragic cancer story. For example, he was hot sauce enthusiast! Well, anything spicy really, but especially hot sauce. He loved eating it, he loved making it. He even tried to grow a pepper once (it didn’t go well). And the jokes basically write themselves when you think about a dude obsessed with hot sauce who literally had his butthole surgically removed. When you look at it that way, this hot sauce eating fundraiser was inevitable.
The Ring of Fire Fundraiser is an annual fundraiser organized by
me, Geoff's wife, Kassia, to honour my hot sauce loving husband, and
to raise funds for colorectal research so all those facing bowel
cancer have the best chance of survival. Ideally, one day no one
will have to face what we've been through. And research to find new
treatments is the only way to get there.
It would mean the world to me, and to Geoff, if you supported
us by making a generous donation. Thank you.
The Ring of Fire Fundraiser is a hot sauce eating event in support of colorectal cancer research. Participants challenge themselves to a marathon of pain as they battle 10 hot wings, each with a spicer sauce than the last, while raising money for colorectal cancer research in Alberta.
Colorectal cancer (aka: bowel cancer, colon cancer) is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in Canada and it is one of leading causes of death from cancer for both men and women in Canada. On average, 68 Canadians will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer every single day. That’s not okay.
The Ring of Fire fundraiser is a hot sauce eating
competition, but the fundraising format is similar to any
other charity walk or run...just with hot wings. Very hot
wings. A marathon of pain, if you will. The general format is:
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With COVID-19, there has been a 20 per cent drop in cancer diagnoses. This means once we are past COVID, there is likely to be a marked increase in diagnoses and at a later (aka: more deadly) stage. This will increase demand for support and services by Alberta Cancer Foundation and other cancer serving organizations. This is one of the many reasons we feel so strongly about this fundraiser. Another is that 68 Canadians are diagnosed every single day with colon cancer. We need to fund research to help lower that number. With your help we can contribute to that research funding.
