By MADDY VITALE
The pandemic did not stop Sea Isle City resident Marci Schankweiler and her foundation, For Pete’s Sake (FPS), from offering a respite for those with cancer with events and weeklong trips.
In fact, Schankweiler and her dedicated volunteers expanded the activities for families dealing with the disease.
They created Cornhole for Cancer -- a mobile cornhole tournament making stops along the East Coast in the summer and fall.
The money raised through Cornhole for Cancer directly benefits the FPS mission to give respite vacations for families facing cancer.
A recent tournament was held in Sea Isle and the event was such as success, it raised about $6,500 for the noble cause.
“This is the first year we are having the cornhole tournaments,” Schankweiler said in an interview Friday. “We are looking to expand them to other cities. We really want to take it on the road.”
The mobile tournaments are being offered by For Pete’s Sake to those in New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and New York.
“We will come to schools and businesses. With the pandemic, we thought of things we could do outside," Schankweiler said. "It is a safe thing to do in the pandemic and a lot of fun.”
The Sea Isle tournament was held on July 9 and hosted by Maryanne Pastry Shoppe, Schankweiler’s family’s shop.
“My brother runs it. The tournament was so much fun," she noted. "It is a great family activity. You can be of any age.”
Marci Schankweiler, right, the founder and chief executive officer of For Pete’s Sake, is joined by Carol Schwind, a nurse with the organization during a 2019 outing in Sea Isle.
Local businesses sponsored the tournament.
For Pete’s Sake was created by Schankweiler in honor of her late first husband, Peter Bossow Jr., a former Sea Isle lifeguard who died of testicular cancer in 1999 when he was just 30 years old.
Schankweiler, who worked at her family’s pastry shop, met Bossow when he was a lifeguard. They fell in love and married.
In addition to offering families vacation getaways from the Caribbean to Sea Isle, the foundation offers ways for those who have lost loved ones to participate in fundraising efforts.
Each year, For Pete’s Sake members run in the Captain Bill Gallagher 10-Mile Island Run in Sea Isle. Last year, the run was canceled due to the pandemic.
This year, Schankweiler said Team FPS, like the cornhole fundraiser, raised approximately $6,500.
“We had 18 runners on our team this year and we raised $6,500,” she noted. “We also had volunteers for the water stations. It is always a lot of fun. We run in honor of all of those who are battling cancer.”
She said each year Beach Patrol Chief Renny Steele partners with FPS for the event.
“Renny is so kind to us,” she added.
Next year, she said, the foundation is hoping to have even more runners participate.
She said she would be remiss if she didn’t give a shout-out of appreciation for Anthony “Tony” DiBrino, who lives in Warrington, Pa., and has a summer home in Sea Isle.
“Once again, Tony was our top FPS fundraiser,” she said.
DiBrino raised $5,000. He runs each year in memory of Gino Francescangeli, a friend that he lost to cancer.
“This run is the one thing I thought I could do to make a difference,” DiBrino said Friday.
Tony DiBrino runs in memory of his friend who is pictured, Gino Francescangeli. (Photo courtesy of Tony DiBrino)
Francescangeli passed away in January of 2015 at age 62.
“I worked with him and knew him before work," DiBrino recalled. "Gino had four kids and all he wanted to do was walk his daughters down the aisle. He never got to do that.”
He formed Team Gino in recent years, while still running under the group FPS.
At times, DiBrino said, he gets emotional when he is in the race.
“I cry during the race,” he said. “Pete (Bossow) and Gino are two people who left this world way too soon."
Schankweiler said heading into fall there are several FPS fundraisers planned, including a golf tournament next month and a cornhole tournament in October.
For more information visit: https://takeabreakfromcancer.org/.
