COLUMBIA, S.C. — Close to 60 people gathered for a tennis event on Sunday to raise money and awareness for breast cancer.
It's been 10 years since Bajvna Vasudeva beat her breast cancer diagnosis. The Columbia resident said the community around the Wildewood Club rallied behind her through the cancer.
"I had meal trains for months. I had people driving me and picking me up from chemo for expansion for everything," she recalls.
She said the experience was her motivation for a "Racquets for Tatas" tennis and pickleball fundraising event.
"It's just a very insidious, aggressive disease," she said. "This is my way of honoring those who we lost and trying to do a little something to move the needle."
She said the event has grown from 12 participants to over 60 players supporting the cause on Sunday. The day started with clinics featuring tennis coaches and individual and dual matches. Vasuadeva said that yearly, they average close to $5,000 raised for local breast cancer resources. One of those is the American Cancer Society. Beth Johnson, a regional government relations director, said breast cancer impacts thousands of women in the state.
"This is an access to care ... issue. Do women have care? Is it available? In some of our rural counties, are the women able to have access? Are they able to afford adequate quality healthcare?" she asked.
Johnson said the most crucial point she wants people to take away from this is to get tested early and often.
One of the dozens of people who showed up on Sunday was Stephanie Portnall, diagnosed with breast cancer in 2022. She said the community is worth so much to someone battling the disease.
"It reminds you of those you're fighting for. It reminds you of the support you have for yourself, and it's just amazing, I really can't say anything else," she said.