Man of the Year: A family’s fight against blood cancer
Brothers Tom and David Reich shared a passion for sailing that brought them together despite their 10-year age difference. They traveled across the Southeast with the Birmingham Sailing Club and spent time together in various other activities. That is, until Tom passed away at 33 from Hodgkin’s Lymphoma blood cancer.
“It was devastating,” David Reich said. “I was reared on his knee. He was my best friend and my brother.”
Reich and his family have stayed active with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) since Tom’s passing 27 years ago. His favorite event has been the Leukemia Cup Regatta, an annual event sponsored by the Birmingham Sailing Club. Sailing in the Regatta brings him back to the times he spent with his brother, and it also raises money for the LLS. He’s even been the live auctioneer for the past three years.
His participation with the Regatta and LLS earned him a nomination from the Alabama/Gulf Coast Chapter for 2013 LLS Man of the Year Award. As a nominee, he has pledged to raise a minimum of $20,000 by May 16.
“Tom gave a lot of himself during treatment,” Reich said. “Now we’re giving back.”
With only 10 weeks to campaign and raise the money, Reich rallied his family together for help. His wife, Lisa, manages the team, and his sister Liz Pittman, a former LLS Woman of the Year candidate, has also joined. Every dollar earned equals one vote for his campaign. His parents Harry and Marilyn Reich, brother Peter Reich and sister Anne Sunkel are also team members.
“It’s not about me,” Reich said. “It’s about getting people together who have a connection with blood cancer.”
Although his 12-year-old daughter Lucy never met her uncle, she wanted to help her dad with his campaign. She took pledges for at least 25 cents for each egg her three chickens laid during April and spread the word to her classmates at Crestline Elementary and friends through her equestrian involvement. The chickens usually lay an egg a day, so each pledge started at approximately $23.
Reich’s niece Mary Pitek, another team member, joined a relay race from Boston to Cape Cod and is fundraising to help. Friends and acquaintances have also joined Reich’s campaign because of their personal connections with blood cancer.
“It’s such a wide spread disease,” Reich said. “Everybody has some type of connection to it.”
Reich stays active in LLS to stay connected to Tom and to make something positive come from the experience. LLS funds research to find a cure, but also helps with patient and family care.
Tom was diagnosed when he was 26 and had seven years in remission before a recurrence. Reich said his brother was always open to trying research drugs and those treatments have gotten better over the years.
“The success rate has quadrupled since that time,” Reich said. “More and more people are getting a clean bill of health after blood cancers.”
After local Man and Woman of the Year Awards have been announced, the two who raised the most funds will win the national title.
Mountain Brook resident David Pruet is also in the running for LLS Man of the Year. He first became involved with the cause in memory of a good friend, Lev Hicks, whom he lost to the disease while he was a college student.
The Grand Finale of the campaign will be May 16, but the competition doesn’t end until after a live and silent auction at the event. Campaigners have the option to bring a certain amount of items, either their own or solicited from local business, to auction. The money raised per item also adds to their votes.
The finale will be held at the McWane Science Center from 6-9 p.m. Call 989-0098 for more.
Visit stopbloodcancer.com to donate to Reich’s campaign or mwoy.org to donate to any of the candidate’s campaigns. The last day for online donations is May 14.