A paddle against cancer: Gilda's Club NH doubles fundraising in 2nd year of Dragon Boat Festival

LACONIA — After a rocky start, Gilda’s Club New Hampshire doubled their fundraising total during the second annual Dragon Boat Festival held Saturday.

Taking place on Paugus Bay, the event featured teams of 16 paddlers seated two by two in 40-foot-long, thin canoes in 200-meter paddling races. Boats also included a drummer and a steersperson to keep the paddling in sync and the boat on course.

When blustery winds Saturday morning put the safety of competitors at risk, Anderson wasn’t sure the event could go on. But Cynthia Makris was happy to host the competition at the Naswa Resort, just down the road from the intended site at Weirs Beach. Practice races for amateurs had been launched from the beach at the Naswa on Friday night.

The more sheltered waters of Paugus Bay and the open arms of a local business provided the event the refuge it needed.

Each team collected donations to enter the race. This year, according to Gilda’s Club New Hampshire co-founder and Executive Director Pat Anderson, the festival raised more than $42,000.

Gilda’s Club provides support for those with cancer and their loved ones through free workshops, support groups, expert connections, lectures and social events, among others. The importance of the organization, Anderson said, is its ability to offer social-emotional support in both structured and casual settings.

“It can be something as simple as a walking group or a coffee group,” Anderson said. “People are able to relax more when they’re with people who understand what they’re going through.”

Gilda’s Club’s namesake, comedian Gilda Radner of Saturday Night Live fame, died in 1989 from ovarian cancer. Radner’s widower, actor Gene Wilder, and Joanna Bull founded the first chapter in New York city in 1995.

Gilda’s Club merged with the nonprofit The Wellness Community in 2009 to form Cancer Support Community, which now has 175 affiliates worldwide. Some Gilda’s Club chapters have taken on the Cancer Support Community name, while others have retained the original moniker.

Anderson, who also helped found the Madison, Wisconsin chapter, moved to New Hampshire 10 years ago. Initially, she wasn’t sure the area was populated enough to support a Gilda’s Club. As she got to know her new home, it quickly changed her mind.

“It’s not just about the size of the community,” Anderson said. “This is a very caring community and they have shown us so much support.”

She started the process of founding Gilda’s Club New Hampshire in 2018, but the pandemic posed major setbacks that the “affiliate in development” is still working to overcome financially.

Affiliates of Cancer Support Community, in order to officially open their doors, must meet the organization’s requirements; one of them is having a year’s worth of operating costs already in the bank.

Though the final figures from the festival are still coming in, Anderson said, the fundraiser may have put Gilda’s Club New Hampshire over the mark.

The Dragon Boat Festival involved both local, amateur teams and traveling competitors who regularly compete in Dragon Boat events against other clubs. In total, 13 teams of 17 — more than 200 athletes — faced off. Club team RI Phoenix from Rhode Island topped the field.

Each amateur competitor was required to raise at least $100, while club teams, because of their frequency of competition, according to Anderson, paid an $850 registration fee.

The boats, paddles and other safety equipment were provided by 22Dragons, an organization based in Montreal that organizes Dragon Boat events, puts on camps and has its own teams.

Doubling its fundraising from last year, Anderson was gratified by the event’s growth and success. 

“I guess we’ll have to do it again next year,” she remarked.