Husker Football: Former Fullback Leads Pink Bandana
By Kelli Anne
Jeremy Stanislav. one of Husker football’s former fullbacks, doesn’t stop at just raising awareness for breast cancer during the month of October. He, along with his brother Justin, other family and friends, have been raising and donating funds and promoting awareness for women in the 20-40 age group since 2008.
What started out as a mud volleyball fundraiser has turned into a non-profit corporation, Pink Bandana, that raises awareness and money to support women battling breast cancer. The Stanislav brothers have personal connections with the struggle of breast cancer as their grandmother battled the disease.
Jeremy Stanislav
Stanislav was a member of Nebraska’s recruiting class of 1996. Back injuries kept Stanislav from playing football after he graduated in 2000.
He currently resides in Lincoln and is an Account Supervisor with Swanson Russell Marketing.
In 2008, Jeremy and Justin Stanislav along with a group friends decided to organize the Beat Breast Cancer Mud Volleyball Tournament in the small town of Abie, NE.
The intent wasn’t to make money for themselves, but instead to help someone else who was battling with the expenses of breast cancer treatment. Along with his brother, Justin Stanislav and good friends, Ed Mclaughlin and Nick Potter, they decided to donate the money raised to a young woman who had recently been diagnosed with the disease. Their goal was to help her pay for hospital bills, groceries or anything else that might alleviate some day-to-day stress so she could fully focus on recovering and surviving.
The tournament netted a $1,900 profit and thus began a journey of giving.
The meet continued to grow and was moved from Abie to Prague, NE (Stanislav’s hometown) in 2011. It involves a festival atmosphere with food, a DJ, large size bag toss, large size ball yoss and other games.
Some groups put together marathons or other athletic events for similar causes, so when asked why a mud volleyball tournament, Jeremy responded, “It’s great to be able to mix some fun in with the awareness part of all of this.
Jeremy Stanislav
At the end of the day it’s about trying to take some of the stress off these ladies. They just need to focus on getting better. If we can do something to help with that, it’s awesome.”
Karla Keller-Leriger, just 23 years old at the time, was Pink Bandana’s first recipient, and the group hasn’t looked back since. Karla currently serves on the Pink Bandana Board.
Pink Bandana’s humble beginnings have led to the annual Beat Breast Cancer Mud Volleyball Tournament where approximately 3,500 people invade the 300 person town of Prague every second weekend in July.
Recently incorporated as a 501c(3) corporation, it’s comprised of 10 board members.
The Tournament is managed, organized and run by this group, not to mention an amazing amount of volunteers.
Pink Bandana’s successes have allowed it to choose two recipients in the past few years, both of whom are the beneficiaries of $10,000 each.
Pink Bandana Board Members and volunteers present a $10,000 donation to Mandy Anderson, and Jodie Branson of LaVista who were the 2014 recipients.
In 2014, a $4,000 total scholarship was instituted for the benefit of a recent high school graduate whose family has been affected by breast cancer.
The organization chooses to operate strictly on a volunteer basis so the maximum amount can be donated to help more women and their families. Unlike other organizations, none of the Board members or volunteers are paid.
The yearly tournament isn’t the only event Pink Bandana uses to gain donations, and in order to grow, sponsorships and donations are critical to continuing to help the women targeted for assistsance.
If you would like to help with any of the events or donate to the cause, feel free to reach out through its website at pinkbandana.org, its facebook page or contact them at bbcmvb@gmail.com