Our History

A Comprehensive History of Passionate Activism

1997- 1999 - Gail MacNeil, Lois Myers, and Patty Stewart are diagnosed with ovarian cancer and begin their treatment. All three are amazed at the lack of available information and general knowledge regarding ovarian cancer. A group of ovarian cancer patients began meeting in 1998 and 1999, including Nurse Practitioner Virginia Macko, Anne Casale, Mary Kay Mann, and Mark Zenobia from On Your Mark Productions, who began organizing KOH’s Walkathons.

May 2000 - The Kaleidoscope of Hope Foundation is born. Gail, Lois, and Patty attend an ovarian cancer fundraising meeting at Atlantic Health’s Carol G. Simon Cancer Center in Morristown, NJ. They decide to create a foundation that will serve as a vehicle for ovarian cancer research and awareness.

September 2000 - The new foundation hosts its first fundraiser, a hugely successful walkathon, drawing 150 walkers and raising $25,000. It becomes the most successful first-time fundraiser ever held in Morris County.

September 9, 2001 - The Kaleidoscope of Hope’s 2nd Annual Walkathon exceeds all expectations. Hosting over 350 walkers, the foundation collects $100,000 for ovarian cancer research and awareness.

November 10, 2001 - Proceeds from the 2nd Annual Walkathon are distributed at the first Kaleidoscope of Hope Foundation Award Dinner. A check for $50,000 is presented to Dr. David Fishman of the National Ovarian Cancer Early Detection Program (NOCEDP). Jamie Boris, executive director of the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF), accepts a check for $25,000.

September 22, 2002 - U.S. Representative Rodney Frelinghuysen delivers opening remarks at the foundation's 3rd Annual Walkathon. More than 400 walkers participate, raising over $100,000.

March 20, 2003 - More than 90 friends and supporters gather for the Kaleidoscope of Hope Foundation's 2nd Annual Awards Dinner, held at the Madison Hotel. Checks for $50,000 and $25,000 are presented to Dr. David Fishman of the National Ovarian Cancer Early Detection Program (NOCEDP) and Jamie Boris of the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF), respectively.

September 7, 2003 - Kaleidoscope of Hope’s 4th Annual Walkathon raises $150,000 in donations and kind gifts. Ovarian cancer survivor Valerie Smaldone of WLTW Lite FM 106.7 offers opening remarks to the crowd of over 550 walkers. The 2003 Walkathon was held in honor of Lynda M. Franklin of Chatham Township, who died of ovarian cancer in 2002.

October 15, 2003 - Escorted by U.S. Representative Rodney Frelinghuysen, KOH founders tour the National Institutes of Health in Washington, D.C.

May 24, 2004 - The 1st Annual Diane Castle Golf Outing raises $16,000.

March 25, 2004 - KOH holds its 3rd Annual Awards Dinner and Silent Auction, where $120,000 is awarded to two renowned researchers and a national advocacy group.

September 19, 2004 - Over 450 people attend the 5th Annual Walkathon in Morris County, raising over $95,000.

September 26, 2004 - Kaleidoscope of Hope’s 1st Annual Walkathon in Lyndhurst at the Meadowlands Environmental Center draws 200 walkers and raises over $23,000 for ovarian cancer research.

April 9, 2005 - Over $200,000 is awarded to area cancer research programs at KOH’s 4th Annual Awards Dinner, including the inaugural Kaleidoscope of Hope Fellowship at the Cancer Institute of New Jersey. U.S. Representative Rodney Frelinghuysen received the Foundation’s first Color of Hope award.

September 18 and 25, 2005 - Nearly 500 supporters help raise close to $130,000 for ovarian cancer research and awareness at KOH’s two recent Walkathons.

April 8, 2006 - More than 175 foundation friends and associates gather at KOH’s annual Color of Hope event. The 2006 reception honors Janet and J. Peter Simon and pharmaceutical giant Wyeth. KOH presented checks totaling $140,000 to major regional cancer research and education programs.

May 22, 2006 - The Diane Castle Memorial Golf Outing at Bergen Hills Golf Club in River Vale, New Jersey, nets over $19,000 to help the foundation.

September 17, 2006 - More than 500 supporters and sponsors help raise $145,000 for ovarian cancer research and awareness at two recent New Jersey walkathons in Morris and Bergen counties.

April 21, 2007 - KOH’s annual Color of Hope event honors Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage and presents $215,000 in awards to researchers engaged in efforts to diagnose, treat and enhance awareness of ovarian cancer.

May 21, 2007 - The Diane Castle Memorial Golf Outing at Bergen Hills Golf Club in River Vale, New Jersey, nets over $18,000 to help the foundation.

September 16, 2007 - At the 8th Annual Morris County Walkathon, co-founders Gail MacNeil and Lois Myers receive a Joint Legislative Resolution recognizing the Kaleidoscope of Hope Foundation’s leadership, fundraising efforts and the foundation’s new Turn the Towns Teal campaign.

September 29, 2007 - The inaugural New Jersey Shore Walkathon draws more than 600 participants, including State Assembly member Sean T. Kean (District 11), along the boardwalk in Avon-by-the Sea.

September 30, 2007 - The Fourth Annual Lyndhurst Walkathon brings hundreds of walkers to Richard W. DeKorte Park at Meadowlands Environmental Center, including guest speaker Mayor Richard DiLascio of Lyndhurst.

April 5, 2008 - KOH’s annual Spring Gala event honors Novartis Oncology and Millie Kowalski, RN, Ph.D., Patient Advocacy Relations, and presents over $200,000 in grant money to national ovarian cancer research programs. Total financial awards by KOH top the $1 million mark.

May 19, 2008 - At Bergen Hills Golf Club in River Vale, New Jersey, the annual Diane Castle Memorial Golf Outing draws 144 players and nets $19,000 to help the foundation.

June 21, 2008 - Gail MacNeil, Kaleidoscope of Hope co-founder, former KOH president and an award winning real estate agent, dies peacefully at home, surrounded by her family, after a nearly 11-year battle with ovarian cancer.

June 30, 2008 - Sixty players convene at Brooklake Country Club in Florham Park, New Jersey, for the first annual Kaleidoscope of Hope Golf Classic, led by honored guest and LPGA star Val Skinner. The awards banquet after draws 75 diners for live and silent auctions.

April 4, 2009 - The Hemotology-Oncology Associates of Northern, New Jersey, PA (HOANNJ) at the 2009 Spring Gala. The foundation also awarded grants to the Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, The Ohio State University, and a scholar award was presented to The Cancer Institute of New Jersey.

April 24, 2009 – Le Cage Aux Folles night at the Lyndhurst Elks raised $8,000.00 for cancer research.

May 18, 2009 - The Annual Diane Castle Golf Outing at Bergen Hills Golf Club raises $19,000.00.

June 5, 2009 - Cindy’s Comrades Bingo Night raises $5,600.00 for cancer research.

September 2009 - Kaleidoscope of Hope Foundation members attend the Governor’s Luncheon sponsored by the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund to raise awareness about ovarian cancer in New Jersey.

September 2009 - Three annual walkathons raise over $190,000 for the Kaleidoscope of Hope Foundation.

April 10, 2010 - The Jersey Shore Girls ( Janice Carey, Mariclaire Scott, and Kathy Lynch) receive the Founders Award at the 2010 Spring Gala. Research grants were awarded to Lacey McNally, Ph.D. a Postdoc Fellow at the University of Alabama, Birmingham and to Dr. Sarah Adams, Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Pennsylvania and to the Gynecological Cancer Foundation.

May 24, 2010 - The annual Diane Castle Memorial Golf Outing at the River Vale Country Club raises over $13,000.

June 12, 2010 - KOH participates in the "One Force to Make A Difference" symposium bringing together Ovarian Cancer organizations from throughout the state of NJ.

September 2010 - Our three walks Morris, Lyndhurst and Avon-by-the-Sea raise over $185,000 for research and awareness. 

October 1, 2010 - KOH and FORCE (Facing our Risk of Cancer Empowered ) collaborated for the Passing of the Torch from Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month to Breast Cancer Awareness Month campaign to raise awareness of the hereditary link between breast and ovarian cancer. 

October 10, 2010- KOH held a 10th Anniversary Brunch to honor healthcare providers and celebrate ten years of raising awareness and funds for research.