In 2011 East Cobb residents Kim Osburn and then 11-year old Grace Bunke were already connected. Grace is the daughter of one of Kim’s good friends, Vicki. But they became connected in a way no one could imagine- they were both diagnosed with cancer. Kim with breast cancer and Grace with bone cancer.
Kim was fortunate in that she had great insurance and enough saved sick time so she was able to take the four months off for treatment without incurring a financial hardship. However, she learned that others weren’t so fortunate, and as a result, she started a yearly fundraiser to benefit the 2 Day Breast Cancer Walk. The first year she made $10,000, and the second year she raised $15,000.
When both Kim and Grace were diagnosed, Kim spent a great deal of time with Grace. Grace’s cancer eventually claimed her leg, and in 2015 Kim dedicated her fundraising efforts to Grace who is now training to become a paralympic athlete.
Kim and Vicki both work in the Cobb County School District, Kim as a first grade teacher at Mt. Bethel Elementary School and Vicki as a school psychologist at Mt. Bethel Elementary and Dodgen Middle schools. Their love of children and especially of those afflicted with cancer led them to co-chair this year’s fundraiser, Mane Event Benefit Concert benefiting CURE Childhood Cancer. CURE uses funds for research, training of future pediatric oncologists and researchers through the Fellowship program at Emory University School of Medicine and programs for families and patients including emergency financial assistance, transportation assistance, counseling and survivorship and bereavement support.
The concert will be held on October 16 at the Mable House from 5-7 pm. The concert will include the band Retrograde (featuring Kayla Taylor and Steve Whitworth) and East Cobb resident John Driskell Hopkins of the Zac Brown Band. The concert will be emceed by Brian Moote and Katie Wassail from The Bert Show on Q100. Tickets can be purchased and donations made at www.maneeventconcert.com. This year’s goal is $75,000, which they hope to exceed.
Kim has been cancer-free for almost five years and Grace is considered NED (No Evidence of Disease). Grace currently attends Dodgen Middle School. As Kim shares, “We have an amazing amount of people in the East Cobb area working to support CURE Childhood Cancer.”
This article originally appeared in the EAST COBBER September 2016 issue.
