HEADstrong Announces 2015 Fall Fundraising Event Series

Holmes, PA – The fall has always been a very significant time for the HEADstrong Foundation™.   September 21, 2005 was the date that founder Nicholas Colleluori was diagnosed with an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and the HEADstrong journey began.  September is also recognized as national leukemia and lymphoma awareness month as well as childhood cancer awareness month.  Colleluori was born on October 19th and lost his heroic battle on November 28th.  Over the past 9 years HEADstrong was worked diligently, channeling many efforts to rally the lacrosse community in support for the cause and honor their founder during this special time of year.  This fall, HEADstrong will be teaming up with college and high school lacrosse teams from all over the country in effort to strengthen their commitment to those fighting the disease through 7 special fundraising events.  The series of charity lacrosse events are focused on promoting cancer awareness, honoring those affected by the diseases and raising funds to support the essential programs and services for patients and their families by the organization.

HEADstrong Fall Event Schedule 

  • 9/26 – 8th Annual Women’s Nicholas Colleluori Classic – Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY
  • 10/3-10/4 – 9th Annual Men’s Nicholas Colleluori Classic – Folsom, PA
  • 10/10 – Nicholas Colleluori Classic, Long Island – Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY
  • 10/10 – 1st Annual HEADstrong SJU Fall Scrimmage – Saint Joseph’s University – Philadelphia, PA
  • 10/11 – Nicholas Colleluori Classic, Baltimore – Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
  • 10/17 – 3rd Annual University City Classic (Men’s and Women’s) – University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
  • 10/17-10/18 – 3rd Annual Faceoff Against Blood Cancer – The Blake School, Minneapolis, MN

On Saturday, September 26th HEADstrong will present the 8th Annual Women’s Nicholas Colleluori Classic at Hofstra University.  The event will recognize those in the fight and will feature 15 collegiate women’s programs including:  Adelphi University, Binghamton University, Central Connecticut State University, Hofstra University, Hofstra Alumni, Iona College, Le Moyne College, Long Island University Brooklyn, Long Island University Post, Manhattan College, New York Athletic Club, Siena College, Stony Brook University, UMASS Lowell and Wagner College, who will come together to face-off against cancer.  Now in its 8th year the event has helped to more than $250,000 to support the cause.

In effort to broaden their reach and engage a wider audience HEADstrong decided to regionalize their signature event, the Nicholas Colleluori Classic.  This year the organization will host (3) events in Folsom, Long Island and Baltimore.  This year 12 DII, DIII and post collegiate teams will meet over the weekend of October 3-4 at Ridley High School in Folsom, PA to participate in the 9th Annual Nicholas Colleluori Classic.

On Saturday, HEADstrong will introduce a new post collegiate division to the Nicholas Colleluori Classic.  The inaugural field will consist of 4 men’s post collegiate clubs including: GMH, HEADstrong, Lacrosse Unlimited and Starboard LC. On Sunday, 8 DII and DIII collegiate men’s programs including:  Catholic University, Farmingdale State College, Immaculata University, Lycoming College, Messiah College, Rosemont College, Stockton University and Wheeling Jesuit University, who will come together to face-off against cancer.

The new regional expansion events will be held on Saturday, October 10th at Hofstra University featuring 4 D1 men’s teams including Dartmouth College, Hofstra University, Lafayette College and Quinnipiac University.  On Sunday, October 11th at Johns Hopkins University featuring another 4 D1 men’s teams including University of Albany, Harvard University, Johns Hopkins University and University of Richmond.  Embracing the ever shifting dynamics of fall lacrosse inspired the organization to create a more intimate format allowing for a more productive experience for participating teams while allowing for HEADstrong to rejuvenate, collaborate and maximize its reach in the biggest lacrosse markets in the country.  Proceeds from the new events will allow HEADstrong to strengthen their commitment to adult and pediatric cancer initiatives in the markets.   Since its inception this milestone event has helped raise more than $1,500,000 and HEADstrong is hopeful that the new format will allow the event to attract sponsorship and more localized support.

Also on Saturday, October 10th Saint Joseph’s University will host the 1st Annual HEADstrong SJU Fall Scrimmage with Villanova University and now Lehigh University joining the mix of teams to round out the event lineup.

On Sunday, October 17th the 3rd Annual University City Classic™ will be held picturesque Penn Park on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania on Saturday October 25, 2014. The event will feature 8 men’s and women’s collegiate programs in a round-robin style format including Boston University, Bucknell University, Drexel University, Mount St. Mary’s University, University of Delaware, University of Pennsylvania and Stanford University.   The event will be played in the shadows of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where he fought his heroic battle against non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The UCC™ was a day of philanthropy, pairing the elements of a fall collegiate scrimmage with a day of service. HEADstrong will provide complimentary admission to patients and families receiving care at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

That same weekend high school teams in Minnesota will take the field to support families from the Upper Midwest affected by the disease at the 3rd Annual Faceoff Against Blood Cancer.  The event will be held at The Blake School in Minneapolis, MN.  This event will help advance the HEADstrong mission over 1,200 miles away from HEADstrong’s national headquarters in Holmes, PA.

HEADstrong’s fall fundraising event series will lead up to the kick-off of Lacrosse Mustache Madness, an annual facial hair growing fundraising campaign which will begin on October 19th.

“On behalf of the HEADstrong Foundation, the Colleluori family and our founder, Nicholas, we wish to extend our sincere appreciation to all of the teams, supporters and volunteers who will be part of our fundraising events this upcoming fall.  This year we have introduced some incredible new events and are thrilled to be expanding and regionalizing existing ones.  Bringing events to markets where we have supporters and are supporting families is our social obligation and great outreach for our cause.  We hope that these new events will allow people to become more familiar with our organization and all of the great work that is being done in our Nick’s name.  To date more than 12,000 families have benefitted from our relentless efforts and we want supporters to know that HEADstrong is leading the charge in helping change the game for those affected by cancer and We have challenged ourselves to create more athletic events so that we can continue to make an impact and further our presence in the cancer community and foster relationships with the national lacrosse community.” – Cheryl Colleluori, HEADstrong President and Nick’s Mom

About HEADstrong Foundation

The HEADstrong Foundation™ is a 501(c)(3) committed to improving the quality of life for cancer patients and their families through providing essential programs and services.

HEADstrong™ is an athletic rooted organization that serves the cancer community by granting direct financial assistance to those financially impacted as a result of the disease, by providing complimentary long-term housing and amenities for those traveling to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for cancer related treatments through Nick’s House™, by funding innovative cancer research through the Nicholas E. Colleluori Lymphoma research fund, by serving family meals and offering outlets of entertainment, by providing fresh groceries to patients being discharged from lengthy hospital stays, by delivering comfort kits to newly hospitalized patients preparing for treatment or transplant, and by lending an arm of support through their peer to peer advocacy group.

The blueprints for the Foundation were conceptualized by Nicholas “HEAD” Colleluori in 2006, from his hospital bed while he underwent treatment for non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, which ultimately claimed his life.  Today, Nick’s vision is being fulfilled through the relentless efforts of his family, athletes and supporters across the country uniting in the fight against cancers.

For more information on the HEADstrong Foundation™ and how you can make a difference go to www.HEADstrong.org.

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