Megan Wenstrup has been to enough fundraisers to know of the deadly nature of breast cancer as well as the survivability of the disease given the right circumstances.
Wenstrup, who owns Heights Cycle in Palos Heights, got a firsthand look at the strength of those going through it when she hired assistant manager Jackie Seiner, who has shown striking resilience in the face of her cancer diagnosis.
The two are planning their second Palos Goes Pink to raise funds for the Rush Breast Cancer Research Fund at Rush University Medical Center Chicago, where Seiner is a patient.
The Oct. 12 fundraiser starts at 8 a.m. at Lake Katherine Nature Center Botanic Gardens in front of the E.G. Simpson Clubhouse, overlooking the lake, and is in partnership with Palos Park Woman’s Club.
“It’s a cause that touches so many lives … but there’s also so much profound hope for treatments and cures for this disease,” Wenstrup said. “The goal is to keep the research ahead of Jackie’s progression and keep her around.”
Wenstrup also adores fitness and enjoys pairing it with her penchant for supporting worthy causes.
“You get everybody with all their endorphins hyped up, right where we need them to be, feeling generous and compassionate,” said Wenstrup, who lives in La Grange. “It gives us the opportunity to share what these nonprofits are all about.”
But it was her assistant manager who really showed Wenstrup what survival could mean.
“When she came in for the interview, she told me, ‘I have metastatic breast cancer,’ recalled Wenstrup. “I was like, ‘Wait, slow down!’ She was really positive and wonderful.”
Seiner was diagnosed with the cancer in 2016 but it turned metastatic, spreading to her brain in 2018. When things seemed to be going well, she and her husband, Rob Seiner, had two children, Ruth and Leo, through a surrogate.
But Seiner, who had worked for nonprofit organizations as a manager and director of operations, needed to be working, albeit with a lighter schedule, and feel that sense of belonging and community. After moving from Chicago to Palos Heights with her family, she heard about Wenstrup needing help.
“She said, ‘I think you’re going to be the yin to my yang,’ she recalls Wenstrup saying at the time, clinching the deal.
Seiner is receiving targeted chemotherapy every three weeks and for a few days after each regimen she is low on energy. But she perseveres, even taking cycle classes a few times monthly.
Her cancer is protein-induced, rather than the more typical hormone-induced, and considered one of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer.
Her oncologist, Dr. Melody A. Cobleigh, and her colleague, Abde Abukhdeir, are doing research that could help develop treatments that would benefit Seiner and others with the disease.
“I’m hopefully defeating some odds,” Seiner said. “The fact that all these community members wanted to help Rush for me is just incredible.”
Tickets for the Oct. 12 fundraiser are $65, and there is room for 100 participants. Each will receive a swag bag of goodies and a Palos Goes Pink beanie hat. The event will feature raffle baskets as well as fitness events such as yoga with The Do Good Movement, strength training with ChuloFit and outdoor workouts with Clearly Reformer Pilates and Run to the Pub. A fitness therapist will be on hand to offer stretching help, and area businesses and food vendors will also be on site for participants after their workouts.
Information and registration are at 708-612-0876, devinenutrition11@gmail.com or https://campscui.active.com/orgs/DevineNutrition?season=3540933.
Janice Neumann is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.