WW to host Cancer Shoot-Out basketball tournament

When Amber Morrow heard her fellow educator, Michelle Chastain’s husband Brian had been diagnosed with Stage 4, terminal colon cancer in 2017, she knew she had to do something. Their young sons played basketball together and Brian had coached teams in the league. Furthermore, the West Washington staff have long described themselves as a family and it was clear that the time had come to band together and help this family.

However, life happens and things got busy and the idea to put together some form of fundraiser was pushed off, until now.

“I was talking to [Michelle] a couple months ago and she was saying how she was forced to get a second job,” said Morrow. “I contacted another parent whose son also plays basketball with our children and they’re good friends and said it’s time we did something.”

This isn’t Morrow’s first rodeo when it comes to planning fundraisers. Her father-in-law needed a transplant and she put together a dinner to raise funds for medical expenses.

“We discussed doing a dinner and I was talking to my mother-in-law and she said, ‘You all do so much ball — why don’t you do a tournament?’ and I thought that was a great idea!” said Morrow.

“Amber said something about doing it this year and I said, ‘That would be great!’” said Chastain. “She said, ‘We didn’t do it last year, so we’re definitely going to do it this year!’ Beth Armstrong also approached me and said something about doing a fundraiser. All of our boys played basketball together and my husband coached them as well when they couldn’t find a basketball coach. Amber’s husband also coached as well, so that’s when the basketball side came into it. They said Brian was like Tom Crain and Ben was like Bobby Knight, so they were a perfect team when they were coaching. There was amazement and we’re just overwhelmed with joy.”

On Sunday, Jan. 20, from 8 a.m. to around 8 p.m., the Cancer Shoot-Out will bring together teams from across the region, from several area schools, for a day of basketball to benefit the Chastain family. When he was diagnosed, Brian discovered he lost his health insurance due to the small number of employees at his law firm, so the whole family of five are now on the West Washington insurance plan, paying $1,800 a month, with a $5,000 deductible, just for insurance. That doesn’t include travel costs, meals and other expenses that pop up when a family is just trying to get by. Brian tried to continue coaching after his diagnosis, but it soon became too difficult.

“He tried, he wanted to be a part of it, but his health really restricted him,” said Morrow. “He’s still working with his law firm … A lot of people don’t understand all the expenses. If you have an emergency trip to the hospital, you may not have time to pack clothes, so you need to run to Walmart or you need a toothbrush or you need gas money or get food. It’s not always just the medical bills … People have a general idea, but unless you’ve gone through this with a family member, you don’t think of every little thing. Sometimes, what you thought was going to be a routine check-up turns into a two-week stay. There’s so many things you can’t anticipate. Even paying for a lunch account or a uniform, things their money would ordinarily pay for are things they’re having to be really restrained about right now.”

Along with a $5 entrance fee, there will be a soup and sandwich meal, costing $5 for a bowl of soup and a sandwich, $1 drinks and $1 desserts. Organizers, including Beth Armstrong, Morrow and Knapp, are also putting together a silent auction featuring gift baskets and other items, including two new mattresses.

The basketball games will feature players from third through sixth grades, boys and girls.

“I think it’s going to be bigger than we anticipate,” said Principal Mary Anne Knapp. “People are coming out of the woodwork. I received a $300 check in the mail today, just from people who are asking what they can do. I just tell them to make it out to Michelle because we’ll just put it all toward that. I think people really want to help and a lot of times, they don’t know what they can do and they don’t think they have the ability to come in and help that day and it’s just easier to send a check.”

“On the basketball side of it, it was originally going to be by invite only,” said Morrow. “We wanted to stay local so we’d have that local connection, but now, I have teams from Providence calling, Floyd Central called me today, Bedford has reached out. We even had a team that wouldn’t be able to participate, but they wanted to reach out and pay the admission fees. They’re really reaching out.”

The silent auction will be open from noon to 2:30 p.m. and the school is looking for those who may be interested in donating items like tickets to sporting events or plays, gift certificates, themed gift baskets and even individual items organizers could combine into gift baskets.

“It’s been my experience with things like this where people know it’s going for a good cause, items that may be worth $100 can go for $300 and $400 because they know the money is going to the right place,” said Knapp. She said anyone with items to donate can bring them to the West Washington High School office.

Morrow said Nice’s Diner is providing soups for the event and Knapp said Walmart will be helping provide food items as well. Linck’s Clothing and Shoes will be providing T-shirts for volunteers, West Washington staff and players before the event and shirts for guests the day of the tournament for $15 a piece.

The organizers are also looking for qualified referees willing to referee the games. Morrow said they don’t necessarily need to be certified.

“We’re running five courts all day, so our hope is to switch out so they don’t need to be there all day because that’s a long time,” she said.

Morrow said area churches, including Westview Christian Church, where the Chastains attend, are coming together and reaching out to help.

Chastain said she can feel the care and love the community has already shown her and her family, even before the tournament.

“The entire community has been amazing,” she said. “This has really just surpassed our expectations. We have people in New Albany wanting to come and there’s just been so much support and I feel the love … I don’t feel like there’s been any avoidance. Everyone has been amazing. I’ve worked in a lot of school districts and I know I have friends outside of here, but I feel like there’s just so much love and I feel like my husband doesn’t always realize how much we’re loved. The staff collected money here and that helped so much with Christmas.”

“We have a building full of compassionate people,” said Knapp.

“We really do,” agreed Chastain. “… I know I’m in a place where I feel loved and supported … I never feel shut down. I always feel comfortable going to whoever for help. I feel like they are our family, just like I feel like my church is my family. The whole community, all of Washington County and it’s spread and it’s just truly been amazing.”

For more about this event and Brian Chastain's cancer battle, see the story in an upcoming edition of The Salem Leader-Democrat.