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Each month through the end of the year, we’ll feature a special person or team who played an integral role in the 2010 Great Strides walks. We hope you’ll find this story, the seventh in the series, to be inspiring as we continue to make Great Strides in our efforts to find a cure for CF!
Jenny Pinardo
At the Sal’s Pals golf tournament, players can pay to play a hole with Sal, 9, who has CF. “Sal is something else,” mom Jenny Pinardo says. “You meet him and you just love him.” |
Walk: Toledo, Ohio, Great Strides held May 1
Team: Sal’s Pals, led by Sal, 9, who has CF, sisters Olivia, 18, and Gianna, 5, and parents Jenny and Rick Pinardo
Impact: Raised $98,000 in 2010 to support the CF Foundation’s vital programs
Why I Walk
When my son Sal was 15 hours old, he was transferred to another hospital with an NICU because he had a bowel obstruction and needed further tests.
As we were being discharged 10 days later, the doctor, who knew I was a nurse, handed me the lab results.
I sat there and read it 15 times, at least. I saw that it said Delta F508 genes, times two.
It was so tough to see that and know that Sal had cystic fibrosis, and then to explain what the diagnosis meant to my husband, Rick.
How Sal’s Pals Got Started
When Sal was just over a year old, we learned of a walk to benefit CF and thought that would be a good way to contribute to the effort to find a cure.
Rick and I both have big Italian families, so we came up with the idea to host an Italian dinner party and charge admission to raise money for Sal’s Pals.
My sister Nikki found a hall willing to donate the space, but it only gave us four months to plan a huge event. I thought there was no way we could possibly throw something together that quickly.
Then that Christmas we received a card from students at Nikki’s school, which is in a pretty poor district. In that card were a bunch of wrinkled dollars and some change that equaled $20.
These kids who had so little gave us everything. I cried and felt so selfish that I didn’t want to take the time to put something together.
At that point, we decided to make the fundraising dinner happen, and we called a meeting with family and friends.
Everyone pitched in their time and talent, and four months later, we held a sold-out dinner for 300 people and raised $32,000.
Our Involvement Today
Today, Sal’s Pals has about 25 people on a committee who help us put on the Italian dinner event each year. It’s grown to 500 guests and always sells out, and we’ve also added a wine tasting and golf outing.
To take our fundraising to the next level, we asked corporations to get involved, and BP and UPS came on board with donations and golf tournaments of their own.
It’s these types of relationships that help us grow by leaps and bounds in our fundraising for CF. This year, we surpassed the half-million dollar mark on our total contributions to date.
What Makes Me Proud
Sal takes everything in stride. He plays lots of sports — baseball, soccer, basketball, and he’s just starting football and is pretty excited about that. Sal is something else — you meet him and you just love him. He’s got a ton of personality and is super cute.
My Biggest Challenge
The uncertainty that goes along with CF. But that’s what motivates us to make sure that Sal can achieve his dreams, no matter what the future holds for him.
My Thanks
Our success as fundraisers is due to the people we’re surrounded by.
For example, my sister Nikki has been a huge help. My uncle Terry, Sal’s godfather, was instrumental in starting the BP golf outing. We call my husband’s best friend, Jeremy, our “IT support guy,” and he also helped get UPS involved.
Rick’s sister, Vicki, keeps track of all our financial stuff and is our makeshift secretary — and often a babysitter. They support us and keep us motivated.
My Dream
We’re not doctors, we’re not researchers. The best thing Rick and I can do is ensure Sal has the treatments he needs to stay healthy.
As tired as we may be, and as much as we don’t want to stay up late to write that speech or make that phone call, we want to make sure Sal and other kids with CF live just as long as everybody else.
Additional Resources
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