Olympic swimmer and Block Cancer Founder Elizabeth Beisel is using her platform to raise awareness and funding for cancer research. Pictured at right are some of the Block Cancer’s merchandise for sale.
In September 2021 Elizabeth Beisel became the first woman to swim from mainland Matunuck to Block Island, in honor of her father Ted, who passed away from cancer. Below Beisel completes the 12.5-mile swim to Block Island.
Olympic swimmer and Block Cancer Founder Elizabeth Beisel is using her platform to raise awareness and funding for cancer research. Pictured at right are some of the Block Cancer’s merchandise for sale.
Photo courtesy of Cate Brown
In September 2021 Elizabeth Beisel became the first woman to swim from mainland Matunuck to Block Island, in honor of her father Ted, who passed away from cancer. Below Beisel completes the 12.5-mile swim to Block Island.
Photo courtesy of Cate Brown
Olympic medalist Elizabeth Beisel completes her 2021 12.5-mile swim to Block Island.
Olympic swimmer and Rhode Island native Elizabeth Beisel may best be known for her personal bests, medals, and being the first woman to swim 12.5 miles from mainland Matunuck to Block Island. In those areas … she is not like most of us. But like most of us, her life has been touched by the heartbreak of cancer – losing her father, Ted, in 2021 to pancreatic cancer.
Beisel dedicated her 2021 “Block Cancer” swim to him, partnering with Swim Across America and raising more than $160,000 for cancer research (fundraising efforts with Swim Across America would eventually bring that total to more than $660,000).
Today, Block Cancer is also a brand, with the vision to: “Find a cure for cancer and provide compassionate support to those in the midst of their fight. Our brand unites cancer warriors and their allies, symbolizing solidarity and hope. Your remarkable stories and unbreakable spirit inspire us to push boundaries and make a difference.”
Block Cancer Founder Beisel shared with The Breeze the “why” behind her record-breaking swim and her dedication to fighting cancer.
“After receiving the news of my dad’s cancer diagnosis, I wanted to do something big for him that gave him hope and excitement to keep fighting during treatment,” she said. “On a beautiful, mild day in February about a month after my dad’s diagnosis, we took a drive down to Point Judith to enjoy the sunshine and warmth. We sat in the car for a while, staring out at Block Island. At one point my dad looked at me and said, ‘Elizabeth, do you think you could swim to Block Island?,’ to which I scoffed at and said absolutely not, no thank you. Later that evening, I was laying in bed and came to the realization that me swimming to Block Island could be the big event my dad could look forward to. The next day I got to planning with my dad. Unfortunately, my dad passed away before I completed the swim to Block Island, but that swim is more meaningful to me than any Olympic medal race I’ve ever won.”
After achieving such a huge goal with the swim, and raising the funds that went along with it, Beisel knew she wanted to continue the fight against cancer in other ways. From there, the brand of Block Cancer began to take form.
“Training for a marathon swim takes a lot of time,” Beisel said. “I was trying to figure out ways to continue to raise money for cancer research, and I immediately thought about how much people loved the hoodies we sold for my swim. I started reaching out to local artists to design some graphics for the merchandise and I built a website and here we are!”
The brand’s website states that it donates 90 percent of net profits to cancer research, offering everyday merchandise, but also products for those living with cancer and cancer care packages.
Block Cancer launched its new Breast Cancer Awareness Collection on Sept. 29, announcing “Pink is the theme. Hope is here. Let’s Block breast cancer.”
“We are so thrilled to launch our Breast Cancer Awareness collection,” Beisel said. “It’s a variety of hats, beanies, crewnecks, hoodies, T-shirts, dog collars – you name it – all in a shade of pink to honor those who have fought and are fighting breast cancer.”
Beisel said she also wanted to be sure Block Cancer offered items that make cancer patients more comfortable. The products range from head scarfs and chemo caps, to port shirts, beanies and blankets.
“One thing I was adamant about including was an entire page dedicated to those living with cancer,” she said. “During my dad’s treatments, he was wearing extremely low quality port shirts and always had little things that made him more comfortable while receiving his chemo. At Block Cancer, I wanted the actual patient to feel seen and valued, so I worked with small businesses to design really comfortable port shirts, chemo caps, and other items those living with cancer may need during treatment.”
Beisel said she is also directly involved in the process of deciding where funding from Block Cancer goes.
“The 90 percent net profits are donated directly to Swim Across America (SAA), the nonprofit I’ve been working with for over 10 years. SAA donates all of their funds to in-lab cancer research, which I personally love because if there’s no funding for research, the research never happens, and a cure will never be found,” she said. “Currently, Block Cancer has funded two massive research projects, both in early detection for pancreatic cancer. The one thing I love most about donating Block Cancer funds to SAA is that I am included in the vetting process of where the dollars go and what they will fund.”
As for future swim plans, Beisel said, “I still see myself completing marathon swims in the future, but for right now I am fully leaning into the ‘brand’ aspect of Block Cancer.”
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