Lake Norman Metsquerade

09/30/2022

09/23/2022

Tonight is the night! Thank you to our silver sponsors for making the Lake Norman Metsquerade possible! ❤️

09/22/2022

A big thank you to our gold sponsors and ! We are blown away by this generous community and so thankful to be a part of it. ❤️

09/21/2022

Need some bling for your Metsquerade dress? Look no further than one of our sponsors who is donating 20% of each purchase to 9/21-9/25.

Shop online or in store and 20% goes to METAvivor for research.

Use code GIVEBACK-LKMET at checkout on kendrascott.com or tell your local store.

Thank you we ❤️ you!!

09/12/2022

Thank you WBTV's Molly Grantham for sharing my story and the importance of raising funds for MBC research. Molly, a praised TV anchor at WBTV is a force and a champion for the community. She lost her mom to about 5 years ago and have made it her mission to shine a light on both the pain and hope that comes with this horrific disease.

With not even two weeks to go we have raised $198,995 to Lake Norman Metsquerade. We still have a few tickets, and will open the silent auction online soon. Go to: lakenormanmets.org to buy tickets, sponsor, donate or partner with us.

Have a beautiful day,
Adiba
(Gala Chair)

At age 37, Adiba Barney was diagnosed with Stage IV, metastatic breast cancer. This Lake Norman woman had already endured a long and winding road of IVF, survived early-stage breast cancer twice, and gone through a tough divorce. She thought with this new diagnosis her dreams of being a mother were crushed.

Before removing her ovaries to start treatment, Adiba and her husband Kris (second husband after the divorce) froze three embryos. The fertility doctor said they had 7% chance of success.

“It’s still a chance,” she said.

Then, gratefully, she responded well to treatment.

“Hope came back,” Adiba said. “Kris and I started thinking about trying again. This time, with the help of a surrogate.”

On October 26th, 2018—after 15-years of trying and longing to become a mom—Adiba, who was now 41, became a mother to her miracle son, Alex.

“Our surrogate, Misha, was a superhero,” Adiba said. “But it also wasn’t an easy decision to make having a child despite living with end-stage cancer. I chose to believe I could in fact live a long time with MBC, and just kept thinking, what if 15-years down the road I regret not going for it?”

Adiba has now lived with metastatic breast cancer for seven years, and is one of the 25% who makes it past five years.

For those who don’t know, metastatic breast cancer is livable, but not curable. You are never a “Survivor.” For that reason, we call those living with MBC, “Thrivers.”

Adiba is part of the non-profit METAvivor (www.metavivor.org), hosting an inaugural gala on September 23rd to raise funds for MBC research. You can find out more at www.lakenormanmets.org.

She’s also one of the Thrivers signed up for our Pink Cupcake Walk on October 1st, and has a large team of people coming with her.

Adiba is just one of many reasons to SIGN UP FOR THE PINK CUPCAKE WALK. Join her, and other Thrivers, Survivors, and Fighters, and a ton of us from WBTV News.

Go here to register >> https://tinyurl.com/PCWTeamMolly

“I’m doing everything in my power to raise crucial funds for MBC research,” she said. “I want my son to know I did what I could not to leave him. and to change the outcome for end-stage breast cancer not just for me, but for other moms as well.”

In this photo of Adiba, Kris and Alex from earlier this year, Alex had just helped his mama shave her head because her treatment (Taxol) was causing hair loss. Another fantastic picture in comments below from when Adiba and Kris first met their newborn.

Share these stories, please. Lots of awesome in our community to help Survivors, Thrivers, and Fighters and getting the word out is really important.

Again, link for the Pink Cupcake Walk is >> https://tinyurl.com/PCWTeamMolly

Thank you, Adiba, for sharing your powerful, personal journey with us.

-Molly

07/17/2022

And I don't just mean in looks..

What a difference 8 years make, - when you have stage 4, .

Left, 2022 - on one of many visits in .

Right, 2014 - on a worktrip in Washington D.C. to present a "Startup Immersion Program" with the Small Business Administration.

Sometimes, I wonder what I would be doing now if I wasn't diagnosed with MBC, just eight months after that D.C. trip.

Don't get me wrong, I love my life, and so grateful I'm still alive but where would I be, career wise you know? When those thoughts come up I cry for a bit, grieve "what could have been" and then try to live in "the now" instead of in "the what ifs".

If you love your career, take a minute and appreciate that you can still work with what you love.

Miss you 🧡🧡🧡
Adiba (Gala Chair)

👩‍🦲 also posting to - new IG/FB for Lake Norman Metsquerade for METAvivor Research and Support Inc.
Buy tickets, donate money/silent auction items, sponsor at lakenormanmets.org👩‍🦲

07/06/2022

WE'RE IN THE NEWS YAY! 😄
Cancer fighter Adiba Barney plans fundraiser this fall.

June 30. For Cornelius resident Adiba Barney, stage 4 (MBC) is deeply personal.

She was diagnosed with MBC in early 2015, at the age of 37, 10 years after her initial stage 1 diagnosis. She has made it her mission in life to raise funds for MBC research, and with that show her “precious son Alex that his mama did everything she could to not leave him.”

Adiba will chair the inaugural Lake Norman Metsquerade Gala to be held at The Peninsula Club on Sept. 23, benefiting MBC research.

The black tie gala will be emceed by retired WBTV News anchor Paul Cameron.

MBC is the incurable and terminal stage of breast cancer, when cancer cells have spread to other parts of the body such as the brain, lungs, liver or bones.

“You see breast cancer is not deadly as long as it stays in the breast. Despite that, you rarely hear about this deadly stage during October’s pink campaigns. For us that are living with MBC, it is known as ‘the invisible elephant in the pink room,’” Adiba says.

About 115 women per day are expected to die from MBC in 2022, in the US alone. MBC is the second-leading cause of cancer death in women. Only lung cancer kills more women each year.

“Thanks to research, new treatments have been keeping me alive longer than the 2-3 years I was prognosed to live. I’m one of the lucky ones, as only about a third of us live longer than five years. I’m now on my sixth line of treatment. Four of them were brand new to the market at the time of my diagnosis,” she said.

Treatment has wreaked havoc on her body over the years.

“Research is truly the only way to save lives,” she said.

Background:
MBC can occur 15-plus years after a person’s original diagnosis and successful treatment. Approximately 30 percent of people initially diagnosed with an early stage cancer will go on to be diagnosed with MBC. Yet only 5- 7 percent of funds donated to breast cancer organizations go toward MBC research.

The goal:
Impact and create change in MBC research.

In dollars:
$250,000 toward a research grant named after the gala. (through METAvivor Research and Support Inc. )

How you can support:
Corporate partnerships and table sponsorships are available. Companies may donate silent auction items, as well.Buy tickets, donate, sponsor and more at lakenormanmets.org
__________

Thank you Dave Yochum at Cornelius Today and Allie Spencer for supporting our fight! This beautiful article will shine a light on and help raise the much needed funds for MBC research.

June 30. For Cornelius resident Adiba Barney, stage 4 metastatic breast cancer (MBC) is deeply personal. She was diagnosed with MBC in early 2015, at the age of 37, 10 years after her initial stage 1 diagnosis. She has made it her mission in life to raise funds for MBC research, and with that show ....

02/10/2022

100% of all the proceeds from the will go to fund research grants through the non-profit METAvivor Research and Support Inc..

About METAvivor:
"Our mission is to transition metastatic breast cancer from a terminal diagnosis to a chronic, manageable disease with a decent quality of life."

METAvivor is a volunteer-led, 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization that funds vital research to help improve the longevity and quality of life for stage 4, Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) patients.

Passionately committed patients ourselves, we rally public attention to the urgent needs of the MBC community, help patients find strength through support and purpose, and make every dollar count as we work with researchers to extend and improve quality of life for MBC patients.

METAvivor is the only organization in the US that exclusively funds MBC research through a scientific peer-review process. We award research grants to individuals with a clinical or other doctoral degree who are actively engaged in areas of metastatic breast cancer research, and whose proposals show distinct promise in making a difference for the stage 4 breast cancer community. Here you can find the past few years of grant recipients: https://metavivor.org/research/grants-awarded/.

"To date, and since our research program started in 2009, we have awarded 167 research grants totaling $23,150,000. More info on www.metavivor.org
.......
Do you live in North Carolina?
We welcome you to the first inaugural Lake Norman Metsquerade Gala on Sept 23, 2022 The Peninsula Club in Cornelius, north of on .

Save the date. We will soon open up the registration. In the meantime, if you're interested in receiving an invitation when ticket sales start or being a table sponsor, corporate partner, provide silent auction items, please email [email protected].

Follow this account for updates on the Gala.

Help us make 2022 our best year yet! Research is the only way to save lives. 💛