Kathleen Granara-Skerry of Medford was shocked when she was confronted with a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer two years ago. She had lost both parents to other cancers, but like about 90 percent of those with pancreatic cancer, hers was determined to have no genetic basis.
Granara-Skerry battled back from a grim prognosis by undergoing surgery and subsequent rounds of chemotherapy and radiation. One month before her yearlong treatments ended in November 2006, however, she participated in a walk to benefit the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. Joining 61 supporters, Granara-Skerry's team raised $37,000.
Determined to make an even bigger impact, Granara-Skerry recently organized the first annual Granara-Skerry Walk for Pancreatic Cancer Research in Medford. More than 350 walkers and volunteers teamed up with more than 800 donors and corporate sponsors, raising $50,100. By combining efforts with the Allen Family Challenge Grant, the walk generated more than $100,000 for pancreatic cancer research at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
"I'm very grateful for every penny we raised. It really was a community effort," said Granara-Skerry, noting that several businesses also donated gift cards for raffles at the event. "I'm so lucky that I'm still here to do something for those who are struggling. If I can help in any way, then I'm going to."
For information about the 2008 Granara-Skerry Walk for Pancreatic Cancer Research, which will take place on Sept. 27, e-mail Granara-SkerryWalk@comcast.net.
WRITER AWARDED RESIDENCY: Sarah Getty credits her mother with instilling in her a love of literature from the times she would read stories and poetry aloud to her as a child. Getty went on to earn a doctorate in English literature and to become a teacher, but it wasn't until she moved from Rhode Island to Bedford in 1976 that she "bit the bullet and dedicated myself to writing."
Since that time, Getty has written numerous works of fiction and published two award-winning books of poetry. "The Land of Milk and Honey" won a Cambridge Poetry Prize in 2002, and "Bring Me Her Heart" was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award after its publication in 2006. In between, she received the New England Poetry Club's Barbara Bradley Award and led a 10-day poetry workshop in Italy.
Getty was recently awarded a highly competitive residency at the Ragdale Foundation, an acclaimed nonprofit artists' community in the Chicago suburb of Lake Forest.
During her two-week stay next month, she will be researching and working on her next major fiction work, a historical novel set in Chicago and based on her family's history.
Getty said she is looking forward to her first artists' retreat, particularly since its location will allow her to research her grandmother's cousin, Birdie Bowman, who lived in Chicago before she perished in the Iroquois Theater Fire, which killed 600 people in 1903.
"It will be nice to have two weeks to myself, away from the usual activities and duties," Getty said. "I'm also looking forward to meeting the other writers, artists, and musicians, and learning about their experiences. I expect to be inspired by all of them."
People items may be submitted to Cindy Cantrell at cantrell@globe.com.
