Columbus North High School in Columbus, Ind., will host the 2015 Courage to Climb concert on Saturday, Aug. 15, at 7:00 p.m. in the high school’s Erne Auditorium. The annual benefit concert — tickets are $15 at the door — honors Columbus North choir director and cancer survivor Janie Gordon.

Diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009, Gordon broke the news to her students during rehearsal for their summer musical production. Despite their shock, three students wanted to do something to help. They secretly planned a benefit concert in honor of Gordon and named the event “Courage to Climb,” based on a motto Gordon had adopted for her battle against cancer. She was just beginning chemotherapy when the concert was held. “It was an incredibly spirit-lifting experience that really helped pull me through,” she recalls.

[Photo: Janie Gordon (right) and Courage to Climb 2015 student coordinator Shelby Bricker.]

Gordon quickly became known throughout the community as an advocate for cancer research, and her relationship with Hoosier Cancer Research Network began soon after, when her students performed during HCRN’s 25th Anniversary gala. In 2010, HCRN honored her with the Terry Hoeppner Patient Advocacy Award.

In its first year, proceeds from Courage to Climb went toward breast cancer research. As the event became an annual occurrence, Gordon wanted to expand the focus to include funding for other cancers. Hoosier Cancer Research Network was a good fit, with its long record of conducting clinical research in a variety of cancer types. Columbus North High School has donated Courage to Climb proceeds to HCRN since 2011, with more than $15,000 raised to date.

The Columbus North Choir Program is currently accepting online donations toward Courage to Climb 2015 through GoFundMe.

Donations to Courage to Climb allow Hoosier Cancer Research Network to support leading cancer researchers in their work to develop cutting-edge treatments for cancer, such as therapies that help the immune system fight cancer and targeted therapies that are based on an individual’s genetic profile.

For the community of Columbus, Courage to Climb has become much more than a benefit concert for cancer research. It is also an opportunity to remember and celebrate loved ones who have battled cancer. And for those who are currently battling cancer, it is an opportunity to be surrounded by a circle of support.

“Our community has come to know this as an annual event, one that touches many lives we will never know,” Gordon said. “We want to inspire people who are going through cancer to know, ‘You can get through this; you are not alone.’”

Shelby Bricker, a Columbus North High School senior, is coordinating the 2015 concert as her senior project. She notes that the majority of those who auditioned for the show have a cancer story.

“Almost everyone has a personal connection,” she said. “And almost everyone can get something out of the concert.”

IF YOU GO:

• When: Saturday, August 15, 2015
• Where: Erne Auditorium, Columbus North High School, 1400 25th St., Columbus IN 47201. See map.
• Cost: $15 at the door. General admission.
• Social Media: Share your photos and comments, using the hashtag #c2climb on Instagram and Twitter!

About Hoosier Cancer Research Network:

Hoosier Cancer Research Network (formerly known as Hoosier Oncology Group) conducts innovative cancer research in collaboration with academic and community physicians and scientists across the United States. The organization provides comprehensive clinical trial management and support, from conception through publication. Created in 1984 as a program of the Walther Cancer Institute, Hoosier Cancer Research Network became an independent nonprofit clinical research organization in 2007. Since its founding, Hoosier Cancer Research Network has initiated more than 150 trials in a variety of cancer types and supportive care, resulting in more than 300 publications. More than 4,600 subjects have participated in Hoosier Cancer Research Network clinical trials.