THE INSPIRATION

On September 25th, 2021, three-time Olympian Elizabeth Beisel completed the 10.4-mile ocean swim from mainland Rhode Island to Block Island. Elizabeth partnered with Swim Across America for “Block Cancer” to honor her father, Ted Beisel, who passed in 2021 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Elizabeth became the first woman to successfully complete the swim raising over $160,000.

THE GRANTS

In addition to the $160,000 Elizabeth raised, Swim Across America raised an additional $500,000, with appreciation to the Lustgarten Foundation, to create a $660,000 grant bucket. The $660,000 is being applied to three grants to fight pancreatic cancer in honor of Ted Beisel:

a) A $60,000 grant to Dr. Peter Yu (NYU) pancreatic research metabolism study was awarded in 2022
b) A $300,000 grant to Dr. Ajay Goel (City of Hope) to conduct research for pancreatic detection was awarded in 2023
c) A $300,000 grant for pancreatic research will be announced in April of 2024

Photo: Elizabeth presents the award to Dr. Yu at Swim Across America—Rhode Island