Community rallies to support family in its fight against cancer

By Andrea Waxman
of The Chronicle staff

Just over a month ago, when Mequon residents Susie Honigberg and Julie Schack learned that fellow Congregation Shalom member Susie Gollin Bartscher, 43, had bad news from her oncologist, they felt compelled to help.

Though they were mostly just acquaintances with Bartscher, Honigberg, Schack and three other Shalom women, Carolyn Schuman, Wendy Smith and Lori Palay, all mothers in their 40s, were moved.
“[Bartscher’s] story hit home; [we knew] it could be any of us,” Schack told The Chronicle in a telephone interview.

Honigberg, one of two breast cancer survivors in the group of five, said that though her case was very different from Bartscher’s, “[survivors are] a sorority of women who want to help each other.”

And in just a month, their first efforts have exploded into a foundation called “FUNdaytion: Families Uniting Now” and a multi-faceted fall family festival expected to raise more than $18,000 to support the Bartschers. It is an initiative that the grassroots founders hope will be used to aid other families in crisis in the future.

When the five first met at Starbucks in Whitefish Bay, Schuman had already collected about $1,000 in gift certificates to area restaurants to help the Bartschers manage their daily meals. As the group learned more about the Bartscher family’s situation, they set out to raise more funds, Honigberg said.

Palay suggested that she and her husband, Dan Zaitz, a professional photographer, offer fall family portraits for a reduced price and donate all of the proceeds to the Bartschers. At that point, they were still thinking of something fairly small, Honigberg said.

But sometime in the last several weeks, the effort began to take on much larger proportions. The women each solicited donations for a silent auction and for food and corporate sponsorships. Ideas started flowing and volunteers poured in. Each of the five women took responsibility for a distinct aspect of the event.

And the community responded with vigor. “We have jump-started the community,” Honigberg said; not just the adults but also the children, and not just the Jewish community, but also the Bartschers’ friends and neighbors, including the Homestead High School football team and its coaches, Schack said.

The effort feeds the organic human need to help others, Honigberg believes, by giving people an avenue to make a difference in one family’s life.

“As humans, we tend to feel very powerless,” in the face of difficult and tragic situations. Organizing and volunteering for this event has allowed people to do something powerful and positive, Honigberg said.

‘Mind off the disease’

Susie Bartscher, wife of Karl Bartscher and mother of David, 16, Adam, 13, Jacob, 9, and Myah, 6, was first diagnosed with breast cancer on Jan. 13, 2004.

Her first biopsy was unreadable and she never knew very much about the original mass, Bartscher told The Chronicle in a telephone interview. She underwent nine surgeries to remove the cancerous cells and finally had a mastectomy and reconstruction surgery, she said.

Then, in February this year, she learned that the cancer had returned.
She began radiation and chemotherapy. Just as the chemotherapy was ending, on Sept. 5, Bartscher received the news that the cancer had metastasized to her liver.

“I wasn’t expecting this,” Bartscher said. “I started with non-invasive breast cancer.” Genetic testing has shown that she does not carry either of the genes connected with breast cancer.

Though her doctors plan to try other kinds of chemotherapy, Bartscher said that, at present, her white blood cell count is too low to allow that. She is waiting by week, by day, by moment, for those counts to rise.

In the meantime the Milwaukee native is happy to be able to focus on Sunday’s event. As general manager of North Shore Bistro for the past 12 years and a restaurant employee for many years before that, Bartscher is accustomed to being busy, especially in the evenings.

Bartscher’s parents are deceased and neither she nor her husband, a native of St. Paul, Minn., have family here. “Having other people around makes it easier to get through the day,” she said. “[It] keeps my mind off the disease and that helps a lot.”

But Bartscher is thinking beyond Sunday. “I’ve talked recently about how I want to learn how to have fun on weekends. I have worked on weekends since I was a child…. I definitely want to do things differently. Maybe get on a plane and take some little trips — spend time with my kids.”

Bartscher said that the efforts of the Shalom women on behalf of her family are “awesome.” Her children are excited about the event and were anxious to get the first flyer out to their friends, “maybe so that they don’t feel so alone.”

The synagogue is donating its community hall for the event on Sunday, Oct. 21, 11:45 a.m. to 3 p.m. Families are invited to enjoy activities including a climbing wall, bouncing games, children’s activities, cookie decorating, arts and crafts, sports games and more.

North Shore Bistro, Ferrantes, Starbucks, Capital Grille, Café 1505, Out and Out Sandwiches and others are donating food.

Silent auction items include a piano bar champagne party, professional guitar lessons, make-up party at Blush, in-home beer-tasting party, professional event photography, Green Bay Packer tickets, cable television package, dinner/hotel package from the Capital Grille and many more.

The event also features live music by One Drum, Jazzing It Up with Joe Aaron and Rock Around the Clock with Rick Aaron.

Tickets will be for sale at the door for cash or check only. Ticket options include a family pass, including two T-shirts, unlimited activities for children, lunch and dessert for a family of up to five people, or individual tickets at $20 for unlimited activities and lunch at $5-$10 per person. For more information e-mail Fundaytion@mac.com.