The ELJ Foundation

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Thank you!

Thank you to all that attended “A Night at the Improv!”

On August 15, 2024, the Elizabeth L. Joksimovic Foundation hosted our first fundraising event since the pandemic began in 2020, A Night at the Improv. The event, held at the IO in Chicago, started with pizza and cocktails before the attendees (about 150 people) filed into the theater where they were entertained by a local professional improv group who played off the monologist, our own Board member, Ike Nierman. Following the clever and hysterical show, Ike introduced our Board President, Peter Nierman, who made some comments on the mission of the foundation and the warmth shared by the group as they remembered Beth’s vibrancy and her battle with gastric cancer. The group then returned to the friendly confines of our party room to participate in a wild raffle. The raffle was propelled by the generosity of the IO as they donated an additional 100 drink tickets as a contribution to the Foundation. Ella Nierman, Claire and Rachel Joksimovic and Ella’s close friends labored to keep up with the ticket sales. Lucky winners walked off with game tickets, Louisville’s best bourbons, Laudi Vidni handbags, Harry Carey’s gift certificates, and other great items such as a future date night at the IO.

Together, after all expenses were paid, the Foundation raised over $10,000. These funds will be used to award oncology nurses from our three great Chicago academic medical centers to attend continuing education conferences for GI cancers and to support local research into prevention and early intervention efforts in gastric cancer. The Board would like to recognize all our donors and supporters who made this event possible. Special recognition to Shelley Joksimovic, Beth’s sister and Board Treasurer, and Kate Thomas of Sun Dagger Design, who spearheaded the modernization of our website and bolstered our technological capacity.

Thank you!

Thank you to all that attended “A Night at the Improv!”

On August 15, 2024, the Elizabeth L. Joksimovic Foundation hosted our first fundraising event since the pandemic began in 2020, A Night at the Improv. The event, held at the IO in Chicago, started with pizza and cocktails before the attendees (about 150 people) filed into the theater where they were entertained by a local professional improv group who played off the monologist, our own Board member, Ike Nierman. Following the clever and hysterical show, Ike introduced our Board President, Peter Nierman, who made some comments on the mission of the foundation and the warmth shared by the group as they remembered Beth’s vibrancy and her battle with gastric cancer. The group then returned to the friendly confines of our party room to participate in a wild raffle. The raffle was propelled by the generosity of the IO as they donated an additional 100 drink tickets as a contribution to the Foundation. Ella Nierman, Claire and Rachel Joksimovic and Ella’s close friends labored to keep up with the ticket sales. Lucky winners walked off with game tickets, Louisville’s best bourbons, Laudi Vidni handbags, Harry Carey’s gift certificates, and other great items such as a future date night at the IO.

Together, after all expenses were paid, the Foundation raised over $10,000. These funds will be used to award oncology nurses from our three great Chicago academic medical centers to attend continuing education conferences for GI cancers and to support local research into prevention and early intervention efforts in gastric cancer. The Board would like to recognize all our donors and supporters who made this event possible. Special recognition to Shelley Joksimovic, Beth’s sister and Board Treasurer, and Kate Thomas of Sun Dagger Design, who spearheaded the modernization of our website and bolstered our technological capacity.

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oUR miSSION statement

The Elizabeth L. Joksimovic Foundation (Beth’s Fund) is dedicated to reducing the incidence of gastric cancers, improving the treatments available to treat this devastating illness, and supporting the nurses and families who care for individuals who have been diagnosed.

The Foundation aims to reduce the frequency of gastric cancer by supporting efforts toward prevention and early intervention through testing and identification of biomarkers that improve efforts to detect this often silent and insidious disease thus making it possible to intervene earlier in the progression of the cancer when treatments are much more effective. A second initiative will help fund clinical research to improve therapies that today include surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. Lastly, the Foundation will support nurses and families as they care for patients and loved ones who are undergoing treatments. The ELJ Foundation will accomplish these goals by making annual contributions to individuals and organizations committed to improving the quality of life for those who battle, as Beth did, in their fight for life against this disease.