Show Me A Cure fights cancer, on wheels

Florissant residents Angie and Matt Bay are the founders of Show Me A Cure, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people with cancer.

If St. Francis was right, and it’s truly “in giving that we receive,” then Matt and Angie Bay are due for some very generous payback. Though Matt works as a firefighter and Angie as a nurse, this amazing Florissant couple spends the bulk of their free time doing even more community service – as the founders and sole “employees” of the nonprofit organization Show Me A Cure.

Launched in 2008, Show Me A Cure was created to raise money for cancer research, following the untimely death of Angie’s father from lung cancer. And though the Bays had no experience in organizing events or running a nonprofit, they decided that their kick-off fundraiser would be a family bike ride on the Katy Trail.

Matt had wanted to do a charity ride ever since his mother was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2001. Fortunately, his mom fully recovered. Unfortunately, his inaugural “Pedaling Out Cancer” ride on the Katy Trail got canceled due to severe weather.

“That was definitely a bummer, after all that planning” he says. “But we pressed on, and in 2009, we ended up having 130 riders!” That same year, the Bays also expanded their mission.

In raising funds for cancer research, they came across many people affected by cancer who were struggling to pay their bills. So with little more than determination and a trusted network of social workers, Matt and Angie launched the “Helping Hand Program” and started giving out money.

“A lot of cancer organizations give out gas cards or help people with transportation to the doctor, but we found there was a real need to help pay mortgages and utilities,” Matt says. “People are dealing with enough stress being sick. They shouldn’t have to worry about getting behind on their bills.”

So far, the Bays have given thousands of dollars to cancer patients in North County and throughout the state, providing each with up to $1,000 in assistance. For the past two Christmases, they’ve also “adopted” a local family affected by cancer and brightened their holiday with gifts and food.

A local family receiving their "Helping Hand" from Show Me A Cure

“The reward of helping somebody like that is just so cool,” Matt says with a mile-wide smile. “It’s awesome. You hand someone that money and they just can’t believe that a total stranger is helping them like that. It really makes you feel proud.”

A man of seemingly boundless energy and passion, Matt works as a firefighter nine shifts a month and then spends nearly every free moment working on Show Me A Cure. “He’s the one who really drives this forward – making phone calls, posting on Facebook, finding donations,” Angie says. “Neither of us are marketing people, so we’ve had to learn as we go along.”

Show Me A Cure does have a board of directors and a small stable of volunteers, but the Bays admit they need more help getting the word out and bringing in money. “Our Helping Hand fund is especially low right now,” Matt says. “We really want to help more people, but that probably means we’ll need corporate sponsors at some point.”

For now, he and Angie (who moved to NoCo in 2003 and love it!) are relying on donations from individuals and trying to organize other fundraising events. They’ve also scheduled their third annual “Pedaling Out Cancer” charity bike ride for September 25, 2010.

“All we want to do is get money in the neediest hands,” Matt says. “There are a lot of cancer charities out there, but I’m proud to say that Show Me A Cure makes a real difference on a local level. We raise money to fight all forms of cancer, but we also directly help the people who are facing cancer every day.”

Show Me A Cure is a 501c3 nonprofit organization. To make a tax-deductible donation or sign up as a volunteer, visit the SMAC website or Facebook page or call (314) 799-9700.

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