Dominican volleyball team members and coaches joined students and coaches from Mount Carmel Academy, Archbishop Chapelle, Cabrini and St. Scholastica high schools, and Loyola University to present the Tulane Cancer Center medical staff with a check for $41,234 from the schools’ Pink Games fundraisers. The funds support patients through Tulane Cancer Center’s Patient Relief Fund that provides assistance for cancer patients facing financial burdens that could become barriers to their care.

At the check presentation, Pink Games Founder David Mocklin, Head Athletic Trainer at Tulane Institute of Sports Medicine, joined Payton Nunez, Abby Slattery, Alexis Ceravola, Emily Jaeger (Athletic Trainer), Sarah Wild, Jessica Chatellier (Coach), Hannah McGowan, Ashlee Juhas (Coach), Sophie Herbert, Elise Peyroux, and Katie Mouton. (Tulane University photo by Paula Burch Celentano).

In addition to tours of the Tulane Comprehensive Cancer Clinic, visiting students also met patients and the medical staff. Patient Deneen McCormick-Phillips was diagnosed cancer when she was dealing with the death of her son. She said the grant she received was, “an unexpected blessing that helped to sustain me for several months. The students who helped to raise these funds should be applauded. They didn’t even know me, but their efforts helped to uplift me at a very difficult time. Thank you seems like too simple a phrase to express my appreciation.”

Dominican’s “Paint The Pitt” Pink volleyball games last October raised $13,446.66 from tickets and t-shirts sales, plus game day fare of Plum Street Snoballs, Parade of Prizes, raffle, bake sale, and Dominican Dad’s Club concessions. Café du Monde was on campus earlier that day and donated 100 percent of their sales of beignets and coffee toward game proceeds.

Jessica Chatellier, Chair of Dominican’s Health/Physical Education Department and Volleyball Coach, said for the Dominican community, “It is an honor that we get to participate in such a great event. Everyone who takes part in the Pink Game, is helping someone in our community deal with the financial stress that cancer can cause. We started this event nine years ago and we have grown so much. I can’t wait to see what we do in the future.”