Photo by Klatte Photography
Pelotonia – the multi-day, up-to-200-mile bike ride that raises money to fight cancer – is always scheduled for early August. But for one local Pelotonia team, the fundraising that surrounds the ride is a months-long endeavor.
The Dublin-based Team 4 THE Cure officially formed in 2018, when the Muirfield Village team joined forces with the Honda Marysville team. The combined team raised almost $135,000 in 2021 alone and aims to surpass that figure in 2022.
Pelotonia, which this year takes place Aug. 5-7, offers ride distances from 20 miles (downtown Columbus to New Albany) to 200 miles (downtown Columbus to Gambier and finishing in New Albany). Most riders participate as part of teams, each taking on a fundraising obligation for The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center (OSUCCC).
Since its inception in 2008, Pelotonia has raised over $236 million to help the center fight cancer, and the ride’s website is awash with stories of innovative cancer research made possible by Pelotonia funds.
The Minds Behind the Team
Team 4 THE Cure is run by a committee, many of whom are members of the Country Club at Muirfield Village. Committee members include Nancy Benson, Bruce Daniels, Kathy Kamnikar, Kathy Mankin, Lauren Menning and Dale Darnell, the latter of whom serves as the team’s semi-official captain.
Darnell refers to the team as a “perfect storm” of fundraising talent, a term that other members have picked up on.
“We all bring different talents to the table,” Benson says.
Darnell rode in his first Pelotonia in 2010, inspired by his wife, Debbie, who was in the midst of her third battle with breast cancer in 20 years. The following year, he formed Team Darnell, bringing together some 30 riders from around the country to don custom jerseys and ride in recognition of Debbie. Sadly, she died mere days before the ride. Now, Darnell rides in Debbie’s honor every year, hoping his efforts will help others win their battles with the disease.
“The common thread is cancer,” Darnell says. “We’ve all been impacted in some way.”
Over the years, he would remarry and form Team Muirfield Village. The team would join forces
with the Honda Marysville team thanks to the club. Daniels is owner of the dealership as well as several others across central Ohio.
Other team members have started out by volunteering at a fundraiser and grown their involvement from there.
“I was just taken by the cause,” Benson says. “The values and the people were who and what represented me, I felt.”
Kamnikar began riding in honor of her father, who died of cancer, and got involved on the fundraising end by organizing a family event in Muirfield Village. Held first at the club, then at the Bogey Inn, the Stroll Muirfield Village Party – featuring food trucks, raffles, pony rides, inflatables, face painting, balloon artists, caricatures, games and more – will be held this year at the Holbrook Recreation Complex on Aug. 9.
As with the other team members, Kamnikar’s involvement has only deepened from there.
“Everybody that’s on the committee is so dedicated,” she says. “Everybody helps with each event as it comes up.”
A Flair for Fundraising
Photo by Klatte Photography
The Country Club at Muirfield Village chef Michael Koenig offered his services for a homecooked meal as one prize in last year’s wine tasting auction.
Though not all of Team 4 THE Cure’s members ride in August, it still fields a big team every year. In 2021, the team numbered 25, with contributors numbering about 700. Members hope to boost both figures in 2022. Its efforts have helped to make Dublin the third-highest fundraising community for the annual ride. The team itself is among the top 20 in terms of money raised.
The key to those sky-high financial figures: fundraising events. Its first year, Team 4 THE Cure held a golf outing fundraiser, and its aspirations have only grown from there.
“We’ve found other fundraising opportunities to surround the bike ride event,” says Benson.
The team held a total of six fundraising events this past year and plans to hold just as many in 2022. It’s already well on its way thanks to a whiskey tasting at Leon’s Garage in Marysville in April and a Mother’s Day yoga event at the Country Club at Muirfield Village in May.
Next on the calendar is P3: Pickleball, Platform, Pelotonia, a pickleball and platform tennis event at the club on June 9. Some of the top pickleball and platform tennis players in the area will give demonstrations and attendees will be able to play themselves or just spectate and enter the sports-themed raffle.
“We have great pros who just said, ‘Yes, anything you want, we’ll make it happen for you guys,’” Mankin says.
The club’s pickleball court, which opened in 2021, was dedicated to club member Jill Michels, a club member who died of breast cancer in 2020. Michels was also a big fan of yoga, so the team dedicated the 2021 Mother’s Day yoga event, as well as a pool party fundraiser, to her.
Since most teams raise money in direct connection with the ride, Team 4 THE Cure’s strategy of
holding fundraisers stands out. Proceeds cover the fundraising obligations of the team’s riders should any of them fall short of their individual goals.
“If they’re making an effort to support (the cause), then we’ll cover the risk,” says Darnell.
Team members find the club’s connections invaluable in their efforts. For example, at last year’s wine tasting fundraiser, one of the auction items was a home-cooked dinner by Michael Koenig, the club’s executive chef. When two bidders kept topping each other, Koenig eventually agreed to do a dinner for each – for a total donation of $45,000. This year, Koenig will prepare bananas foster live at the Sept. 22 wine tasting.
Other events for this season include a golf outing on July 11 and a Stroll Muirfield Village Party Aug. 9 at the Holbrook Recreation Center.
Positive Effects
As of April, Team 4 THE Cure had raised $450,000 since its 2018 inception. That total is all the more impressive because the group is a community team while the top fundraisers tend to be corporate teams, says Eric Olsavsky, vice president of community engagement and partnerships at Pelotonia.
“It’s really remarkable in our world to see a community team, a team that is not affiliated with a workplace, come together for a cause,” Olsavsky says.
Every year, in addition to its fundraising, the team recognizes individuals in their lives who are battling cancer and honors those who have died. The team plants a tree on the golf course in recognition of every honoree. A plaque inside the club indicates where each person’s tree is located.
The team is still soliciting riders for 2022. Darnell emphasizes that riders need not live in Muirfield Village, or even in Dublin, and invites those interested in riding to contact him at rddarnell36@gmail.com.
“If I can do it, anybody can,” says Kamnikar, who rides the 20-mile route every year.
A Special 2022 Honoree
This year, the list of team honorees includes one name that should be familiar to readers of Dublin Life Magazine.
That name is Charles L. “Chuck” Stein, former CEO of Dublin Life publisher CityScene Media Group. Stein died of cancer this past November.
Stein served as CEO at CityScene from 2004 to his retirement in 2014. He was a longtime resident of Muirfield Village and a dedicated member of the Rotary Club of Dublin AM.
Stein was also a longtime member of the club – in fact, when he retired from CityScene, his retirement party was held there. He also has a close connection to Team 4 THE Cure’s organizing committee: Menning is his daughter.
Garth Bishop is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
