Maryland CrossFit Affiliate Rallies to Host 5K for Owners’ Family Member in Cancer Treatment
Jen Dant was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2022. She’s just 32. Her cancer has since progressed to Stage 4, which has expedited her treatment and overall everyday needs.
CrossFit Equity, a gym owned by Dant’s brother- and sister-in-law, plans to host a virtual and in-person 5K event to raise money for Dant’s treatment and care. While she isn’t local to the Elkton, MD, area, where CrossFit Equity is located, members of the gym and the local community have rallied for the cause.
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Krista Bryan, co-owner of CrossFit Equity and sister-in-law to Dant, shared Dant’s emotional story and all that she’s endured since her diagnosis.
- “Jen will be 33 in May. She’s very young to be diagnosed with cervical cancer,” Bryan tells the Morning Chalk Up. “[Jen and her husband Nate] currently live out in Wyoming, but between seasonal jobs, they’d come and live back [in Maryland]. And before she got sicker, she was doing some CrossFit at our gym and a gym in Wyoming.”
- “But she’s at a point where her body can’t tolerate that much anymore.”
Dant announced her updated diagnosis to the family this past January. When they heard the news, “some other friends from the gym who are around different states said they wanted to organize a 5K, and we kind of just collaborated.”
- “It’s a virtual 5K run, so anyone can do it, and we’re doing it onsite at our gym. Her treatment will end around March, and she will need extra funds to pay for medical bills,” Bryan says.
The details: The event, named “Live Like Jen,” is on Saturday, March 23, and those who sign up can do it as a normal 5K run/walk or can do the 5K distance on an erg machine if they’re in person. All funds raised will go directly to Dant’s medical expenses.
- The event costs $25 to sign up for in-person and virtual. Those who come in person can purchase T-shirts, participate in a silent auction, and even jump around in a moon bounce house.
- “We consider our gym like a second family. Our members are always supportive of everything we do. Even friends and family that have businesses are donating items for a silent auction as well,” Bryan says.
- “Jen is super caring and supportive and is just a wonderful person to help and be with my brother. She takes care of my child like she would her own. She is very selfless and positive through it all.”
While Dant is not doing CrossFit currently, the community rallying around her during this difficult time exemplifies the strength of the fitness community as a whole.
How You Can Help
The diagnosis has not only impacted Dant’s fitness, but she’s also unable to work, which has added another financial burden. Her friends and family launched a GoFundMe in 2022 to help with medical expenses.
Bryan is hopeful Dant will be well enough to come to the 5K in person after her treatment is done. Sign up for the Live Like Jen 5K through the link to participate.
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Featured Image: Krista Bryan