Joan's Reach 5th Annual Chili Cook Off

Joan’s Reach is gearing up for what it hopes will be another successful event when it holds its 5th Annual Chili Cook Off Fundraiser on Saturday, October 15th from 2-6 p.m. at the Freehold VFW, 50 Waterworks Rd in Freehold, NJ. Proceeds from the event will benefit Joan’s Reach, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Tickets for the Joan’s Reach Chili Cook Off are available at $30 per adult, $5 per child (age 4-12), or $60 per family (parents and immediate children), with discounts available if purchased online by October 9th. For more information on how to purchase tickets, sponsor the event, or enter the chili cook off contest, visit www.joansreach.org. The cook off will feature original chili dishes, assorted beverages, and a variety of grilled and picnic food. While enjoying a large, diverse food buffet, guests will vote on their favorite chili, and try their luck at various prizes. An event not to be missed!

Joan's Reach is proud to be entering it’s 5th year raising awareness for perinatal hospice care and providing resources and support for families continuing a pregnancy with a life-limiting prenatal diagnosis. With funds raised, we provide families and healthcare providers with care packages, to inform and comfort parents who receive the devastating news that their baby’s life will be limited. Our mission is to support and guide families with helpful and compassionate resources, at the time of diagnosis and beyond.

Joan's Reach was started in loving memory of our daughter, Joan, who was diagnosed in utero with Trisomy 18, a chromosome disorder associated with grave health problems. When doctors told us that our daughter’s life would be brief, we were devastated. But as we watched Joan’s little hand reach out on the ultrasound screen we knew we would love, comfort and care for Joan the entirety of her natural life, however long it may be. What we instinctively embraced as parents is a model of palliative care called perinatal hospice. Joan's Reach advocates to raise awareness of perinatal hospice and palliative care, to honor the life of each child with dignity and compassion.

Joan's Reach provides:

· Advocacy

· Peer support

· Family care packages containing books and references

· Referrals to professional resources for birth planning and bereavement support

“As prenatal testing advances, more parents find themselves in this heartbreaking situation during their pregnancy – knowing their baby's life will be brief. Since we know firsthand how important compassionate support is during such a challenging time, we are committed to ensuring that every family is offered the option of perinatal palliative care when faced with a life-limiting diagnosis for their unborn child, with supportive resources to assist them.

Though Joan’s life was brief, we hope to carry on our daughter’s legacy so that Joan’s Reach may guide other families, as it did us.” - Barbara Keith, Joan’s Mom

For further information on Joan’s Reach visit www.joansreach.org.