Letter from Board President

As we close out an extraordinary year, I want to share my heartfelt gratitude for the generosity and energy that you’ve poured into the Cancer Survivors Park Alliance.

Thanks to you, CSPA can impact families, relationships, and this community we call home. Our mission — to engage, educate, empower, and enhance the lives of anyone affected by cancer — is enabled by your generosity.

Thanks to you, we raised more than $250,000 through our signature Sync for Survivors experience. These funds will have a direct impact on future park programming.

Thanks to you, our ability to create this programming has been enhanced with the addition of Lauren Allen Ricker to our staff as our new Program Coordinator. Lauren will be instrumental in helping us create on-site and online survivorship programs led by CSPA and in partnership with other survivorship communities.

Thanks to you, these programs, intended to support anyone touched by cancer, will be in place to complement medical treatment through programs “outside of the clinic.”

The park itself continues to grow and will forever be a beautiful place to visit, but nature is notoriously unpredictable. After Hurricane Helene, it became evident that the Reedy River, which winds its way through our park, was slowly eroding the bank
bordering the Healing Garden. While we have great and giving partners, our Alliance has come to the realization that timely fixes demand that we take on a financial and logistical burden.

As you consider your end-of-the-year tax-deductible contributions, consider our living park. New tax changes show there is a bigger tax benefit for charitable contributions made in 2025 than will be available in 2026.

Every visit to the park, every walk, ride, and moment beneath the Beacon of Hope, represents the collective care of a community that believes in healing together. CSPA will continue to “lean in” and expand access to survivorship education and lifestyle medicine resources for the benefit of survivors across the Upstate.

On behalf of the Board and staff of the Cancer Survivors Park Alliance, thank you for being part of this journey.

Warm regards,
Jeffrey K. Giguere, M.D., Board President