Why We Train, Part Two: Ulman Cancer Fund's Team Fight Supports Mission in Howard County and Beyond

"It's never been about numbers for us," says Brian Satola. "It truly is about the mission." 

Satola returns to that theme again and again with a dedication that seems to be characteristic of Team Fight, the training team that supports the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults. Satola is the organization's assistant director.

The Ulman Cancer Fund was founded in 1997 as an organization to support young adults struggling with cancer diagnosis and treatment. Its founder, Doug Ulman, fought cancer on three occasions and now advocates for survivors.

In the early days, a team called Run Bike Swim—with just a handful of members, and Ulman staff member Kelly Lance—tried to raise money for the fund.

This laid the groundwork for the current fundraising and training team.

In 2008, after the Ulman Cancer Fund was named a beneficiary of the Iron Girl event series, Team Fight was born. Approximately 30 people joined the team and spread the word to family and friends. Just three years later, Satola hopes to exceed 350 members in 2011.

They have a grassroots effort, one furthered by a highly enthusiastic, visible presence at local events.

"It's a huge opportunity for us to create a huge amount of outreach among the running community—in addition to partnerships we’ve already created," he said.

Satola, like many of the people at the Ulman Cancer Fund, has an athletic background. That background helped him understand that sports can create a powerful platform for a message or story.

"As we started to build this platform, we realized that people ... want to train for a purpose," Satola said. "We truly were able to corral and energize people to work together for a common mission."

That mission? To provide support and education for—and to build connections with—young adults and families affected by cancer.

According to Team Fight's website, 70,000 people between the ages of 15 and 40 are diagnosed with cancer each year. And the survival rate for patients in that group has not improved. 

When Team Fight was founded, "it wasn't about raising money," Satola said.

Rather, the goal was to attract a large group of good people to spread the word.

“Our job, once these people became part of the team, was to educate them about what we do so they could become advocates for the fund," said Satola. 

Team Fight members wear bright gold and blue race jerseys—and a recognizable passion for the organization's mission—to events. 

“We’ve never really done any marketing,” said Katrina McGowan, program coordinator for Team Fight. “It’s all been word of mouth.”

And it's been successful. Team Fight has raised nearly $700,000 since 2008 for the Ulman Cancer Fund. The money raised helps to pay for scholarships and the Fund's Patient Navigation Program, which provides remote or on-site support to young adult cancer patients and their families at the Greenebaum Cancer Center at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore.

An Ulman Cancer Fund representative might help patients enter a clinical trial. She might help them navigate the complex health insurance process. Or she might help them  figure out how to get to treatment or to their pay rent while also facing high treatment costs.

A second Patient Navigation Program is expected to launch at the Lombardi Cancer Center in Washington, D.C., this year.

The Ulman Cancer Fund also runs a free Cancer to 5K program, designed to provide structured exercise to patients who either are undergoing cancer treatment or have just completed it.

Team Fight shares patient profiles and other information from the fund, informing and then motivating its athletes. They arrange structured workouts—at least two per week in the "off season," and more in the spring with the start of race season.

Even if members participate in just one race, they are encouraged to train with the team throughout the year. 

“The goal is to keep the team together over a 12-month period,” Satola said.

This sense of community within the team might account for Team Fight's retention rate.

In the last two years, an overwhelming majority of team members have returned. Satola estimates that 90 percent of team members also volunteer at Team Fight and Ulman Cancer Fund events, even though they are not at all required to do so.

The fundraising requirements for Team Fight range from $250 to $1500 per event, a number that correlates with the cost of the race slot. Team Fight helps athletes reach those goals by setting up fundraising pages and giving them guidance in organizing events or writing e-mails. 

"We try to scale it and make it affordable," said Satola. "We give them resources and tools to fundraise. And they absolutely overachieve, which is really cool."

Satola emphasizes that Team Fight is not a club that puts on its own races. Instead, he seeks to build partnerships with existing clubs like the Howard County Striders and the Mid Maryland Triathlon Club.

“We want to encourage our teammates to get involved in the community and join these clubs,” he said. “We will pay for them to join.”

Team Fight's involvement with the larger multisport community has led to new partnerships as well. This year, the Ulman Cancer Fund was chosen as the national charity partner for the REV3 Triathlon series.

Team Fight members will race in all six REV3 events—in Connecticut, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennesee and Costa Rica—creating more opportunities to raise awareness for the Ulman Cancer Fund.

According to Satola, a number of athletes across the country have already joined Team Fight to raise money for the fund and to race on its behalf.

While the membership has extended beyond state borders, Satola rejected the idea of future chapters across the nation. 

“We will be centralized in this area,” Satola said. “I see us maintaining and growing our foundation in Columbia, reaching up into Baltimore because we have programs there, and reaching down into D.C. because we have programs there.” 

Satola estimates that approximately 70 percent of the team's members are Howard County residents.

Said McGowan, the Team Fight program coordinator: “A small group of them are survivors. A lot of people have been affected by the cause. And then another big group just wants to do something good, and they want to give back and be involved in the community. 

"I am blown away by the stories of why people have gotten involved—whether it’s directly related to the cause or a way to get involved—and just how much people are willing to give,” she said. 

Satola agreed: "The stories we get on a weekly basis are jaw-dropping. I think it surprised a lot of the team—the power of being on a team that is focused on a cause and a mission bigger than themselves. That’s fun to watch."