Above / According to the seasonal schedule, in mid-November the JCM Foundation again will be lighting up the Moser Tower & Millennium Carillon purple to bring awareness to Pancreatic Cancer. At 7PM Sat., Aug. 18, the bells in the carillon will ring out a tribute in memory of Aretha Franklin. (PN File Photo)
On the way back home after a one-hour trek along the Riverwalk that included a loop around Rotary Hill where the 160-foot Moser Tower stands tall, the newscaster on the radio announced that Aretha Franklin, age 76, had died.
A couple hours later, Ann Zediker, longtime local advocate and organizer of the annual Naperville Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk sent an email.
“I’m sure you have already heard about the passing of Aretha Franklin, wrote Zediker. “She passed from Pancreatic Cancer. First family, now a legend pass from this lethal disease, just horrible.”
Zediker went on to remind us of local efforts every summer to bring awareness in search of a cure Pancreatic Cancer.
“Awareness of this disease is critical. Next comes finding a cure, which we are trying to assist with our local walk (held in July). Raising $90,000 at the 2018 Naperville Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk was not easy this year, but every dollar will go towards pancreatic cancer research for better detection tests and more personalized treatment, while also trying to find a cure.”
Find more information at https://events.lustgarten.org/event/2018-naperville-pancreatic-cancer-research-walk/e160440
In mid-November the JCM Foundation will be lighting up the Moser Tower & Millennium Carillon purple to heighten awareness about Pancreatic Cancer and the need to find a cure, Zediker added.
City Carilloneur will perform ‘Aretha Franklin’ tribute August 18
“I am going to play some of Aretha Franklin’s music at the beginning my ‘pops’ at 7PM Saturday,” said Tim Sleep, Naperville City Carilloneur. “It is supposed to be country music, but I will add a tribute to her at the beginning.”
Sleep also mentioned that his brother passed away from pancreatic cancer last summer.
For more info about Moser Tower, visit naperville-millennium-carillon-moser-tower.
R E S P E C T
Aretha Franklin, the multi-Grammy Award-winning singer who has been dubbed “The Queen of Soul” died Thursday at age 76.
Publicist Gwendolyn Quinn told The Associated Press through a family statement that Franklin passed Thursday at 9:50AM at her home in Detroit.
The statement said “Franklin’s official cause of death was due to advance pancreatic cancer of the neuroendocrine type, which was confirmed by Franklin’s oncologist, Dr. Philip Phillips of Karmanos Cancer Institute” in Detroit.
The family added: “In one of the darkest moments of our lives, we are not able to find the appropriate words to express the pain in our heart. We have lost the matriarch and rock of our family. The love she had for her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and cousins knew no bounds.”
The statement continued:
“We have been deeply touched by the incredible outpouring of love and support we have received from close friends, supporters and fans all around the world. Thank you for your compassion and prayers. We have felt your love for Aretha and it brings us comfort to know that her legacy will live on. As we grieve, we ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time.”
Funeral arrangements will be announced in the coming days.
Franklin was born in Memphis, Tenn., on March 25, 1942.
