Earlier this year, 18-month-old Cora Longo was diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia.
“She’s been through the ringer for six months,” said Lindsay Lovett, Longo’s mother, of Collegeville, Montgomery County.
Longo and her family needed help—and on Saturday, Tammy Roehrig and thousands of community members came through.
Longo was the beneficiary of the 14th annual Red Corner Benefit, hosted by Roehrig and her husband Kevin McColgan on their stretch of farmland in Union Township.
Hundreds of people were scattered across the event grounds Saturday afternoon, digging into barbeque chicken and pork sandwiches, and enjoying drinks from the beer and wine garden.
A calm, country ambiance was set by the musical stylings of Quinn and Kyle Campion, who were among the nearly two dozen performers slated to take the stage throughout the all-day event.
Roehrig said the Red Corner Benefit was inspired by the yearly road trips her family would take to the Bridge School Benefit, a charity concert in San Franciso, hosted by Neil Young, that benefits disabled children.
“We thought, we have some space, maybe we should carry the tradition on here,” Roehrig said. “We didn’t know what the cause would be…the morning we were talking about it, we open up the Reading Eagle, there was an article about a local girl, Kiki Fox, who had a very rare form of (cancer).”
Fox became the beneficiary of the first ever Red Corner event in 2008.
“Our first year was small, it was like 80 people and burgers,” Roehrig said. “(The Foxes) never reached out to us, it was just something that we did.”
Roehrig said the event led to years of friendship between her and Kim Fox, Kiki Fox’s mother, and the start of an annual Berks County tradition.
The Foxes could be spotted among the crowd Saturday, sporting the bright red shirt worn by volunteers assisting with the event.
“We’ve all become one big group that no matter who it is, or what’s happening, we’re here to help,” said Kiki Fox, 20, now a sophomore studying Civil Engineering at Shippensburg University.
Fox said she was about a year into her bout with cancer when she first got involved with the Red Corner Benefit.
“I’ve been in remission now for over 13 years,” Fox said. “It was chemo and radiation and transplants, and I got it removed.”
Kiki Fox said she was encouraged by the large turnout—Roehrig estimated a total attendance of 3,000 for the day.
“We’re just getting started and there are already so many people here, just spending the day,” Fox said. “It’s awesome for Cora.”
Also at the event was Skylar West, 11, who was the beneficiary of the event in 2014.
West said she wants to be a pediatric oncologist when she gets older.
“I’m really happy that a lot of people started joining (the event),” West said. “It’s good, what they do.”
Roehrig said the event wouldn’t be possible without the help of the community—and that help is even more essential amid post-COVID inflation.
“Things are four, five times the cost, even vendors that we’ve used for years,” Roehrig said. “But this year, it seems to be coming back, with both donors and attendees and crews helping out.”
Things are also looking up for Longo—Lovitt said a recent biopsy found zero cancer cells.
“She’s doing really well right now, probably the best she’s been since treatment,” Lovitt said. “Now she’s got a better chance. We’re very hopeful.”
Lovitt said she was blown away by the support.
“I keep saying ‘are you sure this is all for us?,’” Lovitt said. “You meet a lot of families that have been through it, they’re all still here, they all give back.”
For attendees George Tritz, Boyertown, and Danielle Kearney, Philadelphia, Saturday was the perfect example of what can be accomplished when people come together for a good cause.
Tritz said he’s been coming to the event, and helping with the setup for 12 years, and his children assist with photography and serving drinks.
“Kevin and Tammy…great people. It doesn’t get any better than that,” Tritz said. “The bands are great; the people are great.”
Source: Berkshire mont
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