When Laurie Greco lost her brother, Huey, to pancreatic cancer, she wanted to find a way to fight back. “My heart and mind told me that I needed to help the people going through what he did,” she said.
Her friend had previously worked with Project Purple CEO Dino Verrelli on a fundraiser, and she put Greco in touch with him. With his help she planned a fundraiser partnered with Warterbury bar The Cave, which raises thousands of dollars each event through raffles.
“We pretty much take over the whole venue,” Greco said. “We usually do half the money raised for research and half for patient financial aid.” In addition to raffles and other money raising efforts, the event gives out Project Purple-branded bracelets and cups, as well as holding tributes and toasts to people who had been lost to pancreatic cancer over the previous year. “It’s a way to remember and honor people,” Greco said.
