Blog Spotlight: Dani Gray on the 'Duckies' Fight To Aid Miles for Moffitt

Dani Gray's mission, in memory of her mother, is to "give cancer a big sucker punch in the face," and this year she intends to do just that, once more, by "throwing down the gauntlet" to raise $20,000 for the Miles for Moffitt.

In her latest blog post, Gray calls for all "duckies" to band together to repeat last year's triumph as the highest fundraising team for Miles for Moffitt. Proceeds benefit the Moffitt Cancer Center and its research to support active and enduring efforts to cure and prevent cancer.  

• See Related Coverage Below

In her blog, Gray said her efforts are in memory of her mom, "the type of lady who lit up a room" and "left an imprint on everyone she met." Gray said her mother was "brave and strong," creative, "passionate about the things she believed in" and "once she put her mind to something, you could consider it not only done, but done in a way most people wouldn’t take the time to imagine."

Gray's mother died in November 1998, when Grey was 22.

"I needed a way to honor her," she said, which led to her participation in cancer fundraisers. Then, she heard about Miles for Moffitt.

When the doctors gave her mother six months to live, "someone told her about Moffitt," Gray said. "They said, 'If you have a Cadillac, you take it to the Cadillac dealer. If you have cancer, you go to Moffitt.' "

"Between my mother’s own tenacious spirit and the caring staff at Moffitt, she lived two more years," Gray said. "Time with your loved ones is life’s most precious gift and this is what Moffitt gave to me."

Through Miles for Moffitt, Gray said she has found a way to give back.

"My fiancé, Sean Donohue, and I formed a team of our friends and our children, the 'Fire-Breathing Rubber Duckies,' " Gray said. "It was really important to us to involve the kids.  We wanted to find fun ways to raise money and show the kids that we all could make a difference."

Gray said she approached Sean Rice, owner of the O’Brien’s Irish Pub and Family Restaurant in Brandon, about doing a fundraiser together.

"It was very important to me for Sean to know that we were willing to work hard and didn’t plan on O’Brien’s being the only fundraiser and that we were not just looking for a handout," Gray said. "I knew that Sean was always doing things for the community, but what I didn’t know is that Sean’s Uncle Martin was terminally ill with cancer.  What none of us knew is that Sean’s business partner and beloved friend, Tony Martin, was about to be diagnosed with an inoperable tumor and would spend months at Moffitt getting chemo and radiation treatment."

Gray said Rice and Martin "and the whole Brandon O’Brien’s family jumped on board with the Duckies," and by the day of last year's race, the Duckies "had become a team of 62."

"Yes, cancer had made me feel helpless as I watched my Mama fade away, but Miles for Moffitt gave me a way to fight back," Gray said. "The best part for me was that somewhere along the way, it became not just about me and my Mom anymore. I realized that we were teaching our kids that no one was too small to make a difference.  We were giving our community an opportunity to celebrate their survivors and to honor those they had lost."

Miles for Moffitt, she added, "gave us big boxing gloves to fight against this horrid disease."

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Read more about the Fire-Breathing Rubber Duckies in Gray's latest blog.

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RELATED COVERAGE:

• O'Brien's Fire-Breathing Rubber Duckies Team Thanks Its Sponsors

• O'Brien's Fire-Breathing Rubber Duckies' Founder Shares Her Story

• O'Brien's Fire-Breathing Rubber Duckies at It Again!

• O'Brien's 'Ken-Ducky Derby' To Benefit Miles for Moffitt Fundraiser

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