October 14, 2021
photo courtesy of Jenny Ingram
(From left to right) Emilie Hensley, Jenny Ingram and Tanya Srouji attend the second Breast Dance Party Ever, an event organized by Ingram with the help of her friends to benefit Gateway to Hope.
“I remember Jenny and I were just walking through the park and she wanted to find a way to celebrate being done with chemo but also find a way to help others,” one of Ingram’s close friends, Tanya Srouji, said.
This idea sparked The Breast Dance Party Ever (BDPE), an event organized and hosted by Ingram along with the help of her close friends Emilie Hensley and Srouji. The first dance took place in 2017 and the second in 2018.
“She wanted to find an organization that directly helped women going through the [treatment] process [for Breast Cancer]. So she found Gateway to Hope and we figured it out as we went. She ended up on the phone with the Caramel Room downtown and the woman that she spoke to had a connection with someone who had Breast Cancer and they donated a venue to us. Once we got that, we got the ball rolling,” Srouji said.
Ingram chose Gateway to Hope as the charity to raise money for as a result of its locality in the St. Louis area and the services it provides. She heard about the program since it was an organization co-founded by one of her doctors.
“The last thing that somebody needs to worry about when they’re going through cancer treatment is money. When I was going through treatment, I moved in with my folks, so I didn’t have to worry about paying for food and utilities and all that. But, I just thought it was really important that I contributed to helping people out because what if I had been a single mom who didn’t make very much money? What would I do? I wanted to help an organization that provided financial assistance to people who were struggling to make ends meet, and then they had a cancer diagnosis. The last thing you should have to worry about when you’re dealing with cancer is how you’re going to pay your bills,” Ingram said.
After that, Ingram contacted friends and family to find silent auction donations, food, drinks and music. Then, the event was underway.
“Before the event when we were just standing in the space. After all the work we put into it, seeing it all come together was like ‘Wow, we’re doing this’,” Srouji said.
But Ingram’s involvement in Breast Cancer organizations doesn’t stop there. In addition to the BDPE fundraiser, she also participates in Gateway to Hope campaigns and was awarded the Stephanie Phillips Survivorship Award for Outstanding Courage and Leadership in the Fight Against Cancer by the Coaches Vs. Cancer Organization, which is affiliated with the American Cancer Society.
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