It began in a typically busy family household.
A pile of stuff was gathering in the basement of Rachael Smith’s family home. “Have a yard sale and get rid of it!” was on their “to do” list for years. Then, suddenly, their world was turned upside down.
In April 2004, Rachael Smith was diagnosed with breast cancer. In the following nine months, her treatment included surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Rachael struggled with what to tell her two daughters, Grace and Emma. Rachael and her family endured a very tough year. As life in their household returned to a relatively normal pace their focus turned to finding a way to give back. Rachael was determined to find a way to ensure her daughters would never have to hear the words “you have breast cancer.”
All the while, the pile of stuff in the basement hadn’t gone anywhere – and it triggered the idea. What if they could re-invent the yard sale? They wanted to make it easier to hold a sale so more people could get involved to make it a really big community event that would attract more buyers and generate more money.
A group of close friends joined forces to turn this vision into a reality. They created and built Yard Sale for the Cure and worked tirelessly to make the inaugural event a big success - and it was! Now a signature event for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, every dollar raised by Yard Sale for the Cure goes to support the Foundation's mission of creating a future without breast cancer!
