Play4Kay
Uniting in the fight against ALL cancers affecting women.
Jump straight into our one-stop-shop, the Play4Kay Playbook:
What is Play4Kay?
The vision of Play4Kay came directly from Coach Kay Yow.
Through Play4Kay, she saw a way to bring communities together and honor cancer warriors in the fight against ALL cancers affecting women. Uniting players, coaches, officials, and fans to do something for the greater good that far exceeds wins and losses in competition, the Play4Kay initiative is our largest fundraiser and plays a major role in our success.
The vision of Play4Kay came directly from Coach Kay Yow.
Through Play4Kay, she saw a way to bring communities together and honor cancer warriors in the fight against ALL cancers affecting women. Uniting players, coaches, officials, and fans to do something for the greater good that far exceeds wins and losses in competition, the Play4Kay initiative is our largest fundraiser and plays a major role in our success.
How do I join the movement?
It’s as simple as it sounds–a game named Play4Kay, honoring cancer survivors, and donating money to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. We’ve compiled a PDF of resources to make hosting a Play4Kay game a breeze, but here are the 3 easy steps:
1. Pick a game on your schedule & call it Play4Kay.
2. Raise money around your game and donate it to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
3. Celebrate female cancer survivors, thrivers, and warriors at your game.
Why should my team Play4Kay?
This nationwide grassroots movement is our largest fundraiser and is key in our fight against ALL cancers affecting women.
High schools, colleges, and universities at all levels across the country participate in Play4Kay events. Hundreds of teams have participated! Take a look at who has participated in the past:
Celebrate cancer survivors
When Coach Yow established the Fund, she wanted nothing more than survivors to be honored, lifted up, encouraged and given hope. She believed that united together, we could do amazing things.
“We have little or no control over what happens to us, but we have 100% control over how we will respond.” – Coach Kay Yow
Here's how you can enhance your game!
There are many ways to make your Play4Kay game stand out from the crowd
- You can participate in the National Free Throw Challenge
- Create your own fundraiser for Play4Kay!
- Be creative with DIY activities to involve the community
- Hold an auction to raise even more funds
- Get t-shirts for your team, fans, and survivors!
- Feel free to contact us if you want other ideas–or to share yours!
As part of your participation, the Kay Yow Cancer Fund is offering you a free opportunity to be a part of the Empowerment Tour. Through our Empowerment Tour, we are able to educate, equip, and empower the next generation in the fight against ALL cancers affecting women. Contact Jenny Palmateer (jenny.palmateer@kayyow.com) for more details.
We’ve made creating, hosting, and taking part in a Play4Kay game easier than ever.
Here you’ll find all the information you could need with plenty of goodies to amplify your impact like P.A. reads, videos, printable materials, and more!
We’ve even included a playlist to pump up your visitors, players, and survivors! We collected some songs to empower attendees of all ages.
Download all the above resources compiled into a single Playbook.
Choose your Playbook:
By requesting a Play4Kay Playbook, you agree to digital communication from the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
While Coach Yow had an on-and-off-again battle with breast cancer, our goal at the Kay Yow Cancer Fund is to fight ALL cancers that affect women. This includes breast cancer, skin cancer, brain cancer, and any cancer a woman has ever battled.
We recommend downloading the PDF Playbook above. If you have additional questions, please contact one of our team members:
- Jennifer Sullivan, Senior Director of Play4Kay
(jennifer.sullivan@kayyow.com) - Jenny Palmateer, Senior Vice President of Programming
(jenny.palmateer@kayyow.com) - Audra Smith, Vice President of Play4Kay
(audra.smith@kayyow.com)
While similar, Play4Kay means so much more! Hosting a Play4Kay game rather than a “pink game” signifies your intention to fight cancer alongside the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and uplift survivors–a key part of programming. Calling it a Play4Kay game also allows the Fund to share your social posts across our nationwide audience.
We have a line of t-shirts available for purchase for groups’ and teams’ needs. Click here to access our online store.
First of all, thank you! Click here to send in your team’s donation.
We’ve awarded $7.88 million in the fight against all cancers affecting women and you’ve played an instrumental part in that fight. Click here to see more information on our grants across the country.
Other Questions?
Senior Director of Play4Kay, Jennifer Sullivan (jennifer.sullivan@kayyow.com), is more than happy to help you for the first time or the 100th!