In February 2016, three childhood friends ventured to Boston to partake in our first Cupid’s Undie Run to raise money for Neurofibromatosis. Full of apprehension, we dubbed ourselves “Team Shivering Skivvies”, braved the cold and were proud of the $36 we raised together.
Left to right (front row):Barbie Carignan, Becky Varholak and Patrick Ellis.
Left to right (back row): Gina Dion, Jonathan Medwid, Trish Savino, Aparmna Devershetty, Bill Holt, Robyn Holt, Any Reay and Don Miner.
Fast forward to 2024: Our team has grown and evolved and is made up mostly of Suffield friends. We have dressed in undies as Superheroes, pink flamingos, bees, pirates, peacocks and more. We took the one-day Boston run and grew it into a year-round fundraising venture with multiple local events. This year was the final year for me leading the team and it was a perfect ending in every way. Our theme of Hippies with the motto “Peace, Love & A Cure for NF” brought us peace and happiness as a team ended with our hearts full of gratitude. It was our very best year…our team was the biggest yet with 16 members, and we broke our past fundraising records, raising $33,489. At the time of Cupid’s Undie Run on Feb. 17, we were in second place, just a few hundred dollars behind a team of 69 members. Fundraising officially ends March 15, and Team Shivering Skivvies has finished in first place in Boston and fourth place nationally. Collectively, nine years of “freezin’ for a reason” allowed this little team to raise nearly $110,000!
The difference this makes for Neurofibromatosis research is outstanding. This affects me personally, as someone battling NF2. But it is so much more than that for me. The sheer number of friends, family and even strangers who have given to our cause is astounding. These nine years of fundraising have been a community project that has brought countless local businesses to the forefront in their support of our cause. Through raffles and other donations, I was able to meet numerous business owners and share their services and products with as many as I could reach. This town means the world to me and the support I find here is encouraging and inspiring. My teammates have done incredible work alongside me, but it’s also been all of you. You’ve given so much financially and with your enthusiastic support of what we were doing. Thank you, Suffield, from the bottom of my heart, for nine memorable years of making a massive difference for Neurofibromatosis, for Team Shivering Skivvies…and for me. I am going forward with a sense of accomplishment and wearing pants.