Photo caption: (Left to right, back row) Michael Zehnder, Martha Zehnder Kaczynski, Bill Zehnder, Karen Zehnder, Amy Zehnder Grossi present check to (left to right, front row) Natalie VanSteenkiste and Jennifer Beamer from the American Cancer Society.
Over $50,000 collected by Bavarian Inn Corporation in 2022
Team members from the Bavarian Inn Corporation (including the Bavarian Inn Restaurant, the Bavarian Inn Lodge, Frankenmuth River Place Shops, and various gift shop entities) have raised more than $50,000 to benefit the American Cancer Society (ACS).
In 2022, the Bavarian Inn Corporation joined together for the first time to collect $51,188 through the company’s annual giving program.
The ACS is the leading cancer-fighting organization with a vision of ending cancer as we know it. Besides its research efforts, the ACS advocates for lifesaving policy changes and promotes healthy lifestyles to help prevent cancer. According to the ACS, this year in the U.S. there will be an estimated 1.958 million new cancer cases and 609,000 cancer deaths. To combat this, the ACS is currently funding 19 grants in Michigan totaling more than $13.8 million. In 2023, 2 more grants will be added for a total of 21.
The year-long charity campaign wrapped up in December and the fundraising total was announced at the annual post-holiday employee parties in January. Employees raised funds through voluntary payroll deductions, participating in dunk tanks, game card promotions, multiple events and other activities throughout the year. The Bavarian Inn Zehnder family matched the funds raised for 2022.
“The Bavarian Inn family has over 800 caring team members who give so generously each year to help those in need,” said Martha Zehnder Kaczynski, vice president of the Bavarian Inn Lodge. “We know these funds will be put to good use.”
The Bavarian Inn’s family matriarch Dorothy Zehnder has been battling ovarian cancer since 2019 and the Bavarian Inn Lodge’s founder Judy Zehnder Keller died from lung and brain cancer in October 2022.
“I don’t believe there is anyone that has not been affected by cancer whether they have been diagnosed or knows someone who has,” said Zehnder Kaczynski. “We are all looking forward to the day we don’t hear the word cancer anymore.”
