Published: July 24, 2009 11:11 pm      

Cancer cause: Late nurse’s family finds comfort in helping others

Peggy Tiffany was described as the life of the party, so it only seems fitting to remember her with a party.

When the 53-year-old Johns-town woman died last July from cancer, her family knew they wanted to do something that would not only keep Tiffany’s memory alive, but help others battling the disease.

After kicking around some ideas and discussing their concerns, Jamie Tiffany, along with his sisters, Jennifer and Jill, established the Peggy Tiffany Memorial Fund through the Conemaugh Health Foundation to help cancer patients pay for transportaion, medications, wigs and other services.

And in keeping with Peggy Tiffany’s fun-loving spirit, an oldies dance featuring tunes from “Your Dad’s Friends” will be held at 6:30 p.m. today at Ace’s Lounge to help raise funds for the foundation.

“I know she’d like this because she used to go to those dances,” said Jamie Tiffany, a Johnstown resident. “We just wanted to do something she liked to do. I think she’d be proud.”

In addition, an auction will be held where people can bid on Pittsburgh Penguins jerseys signed by Kris Letang and Sergei Gonchar and a football autographed by Santonio Holmes of the Pittsburgh Steelers. All items will come with a certificate of authenticity.

“We have about 150 people who have signed up in advance, and I’m hoping that between 200 and 250 people show up,” Tiffany said. “So far, support has been overwhelming and so many people loved my mom, so I think this will be a well-attended event.”

The goal is to present a $10,000 check to the Conemaugh Health Foundation, the minimum amount the foundation will accept. In the meantime, donations are being accepted through an account with 1st Summit Bank. To date, about $7,000 has been collected.

Tiffany also has held bowling tournaments in his mother’s honor and raised a good chunk of that money simply through 50/50 ticket sales.

“The bowling tournament is something I’d like to do annually,” he said. “Working on projects like this is therapy for me and keeps my mind off of losing her and on keeping her memory alive.”

He said the family would like to present to the foundation the largest cash donation it has ever received.

“The people at Conemaugh laugh at me because I’d love to see a Peggy Tiffany cancer wing. But hey, if you don’t set high goals then what is the use in trying?” Tiffany said.

He added that his mother was a longtime nurse at Memorial Medical Center, working herself through the ranks, and eventually was a nursing supervisor at the time of her death.

“I found out about her breast cancer in April 2005, and it then spread to her brain, liver, stomach and pancreas,” Tiffany said.

“It wasn’t too aggressive until the last six months when we started to see her go downhill.”

But even on her sickest days, Tiffany said his mother didn’t let the cancer keep her down.

“She was an avid sports fan and she’d be out there tailgating with us at Penn State home football games,” he said.

“There’d be times she’d call me and say she wasn’t feeling up to it. But there she’d be at 7 a.m. Saturday morning, ready to go.”

Tiffany described his mom as a very hands-on parent who always was on the go ­– juggling work and her three children’s activities.

“She hardly missed any of my sporting events, and I can probably count on one hand games she missed,” he said. “I swear she ran on no sleep, and looking back, I have no idea how she did it all. She always made time for us.”

And although Peggy Tiffany is gone, her desire to help people will continue on through her children.

“She touched everyone she knew in some way, so we want to help others. And if we help just one person or one family, then we’ve done what we’ve set out to do,” Tiffany said.