Waxahachie Police Department raises money for testicular cancer awareness
- Charity Fitch
- Aug 9, 2023
- 3 min read
The Waxahachie Police Department is hosting a drive-through Testicular Cancer Awareness sale at KBEC, located at 711 Ferris Ave. From 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, cars can drive up and buy a hat, shirt or decal or simply donate to help with the fight against testicular cancer and to help raise awareness of the disease.
The shirt reads “Texas strong to defeat testicular cancer” and has an image of a “Thin Blue Line” American flag/Texas with a purple ribbon wrapping around it. The decal is the same Texas and ribbon image.
The hat is available in four different color options: all black, two black and gray variations, and camouflage. On the right side of each hat is a Texas with a “Thin Blue Line” American flag inside and a line of purple outlining the state’s exterior.
The purple line and the design are personal to community services officer James “J.T.” Taylor, a stage four testicular cancer survivor who has been cancer free for 14 years. He started the department’s testicular cancer awareness fundraiser about seven years ago under the direction of retired Chief Wade Goolsby.
“When I went through my cancer, a lot of people helped,” Taylor said. “My karate school got together, and they did big fundraisers for me to raise money to help pay my medical bills. All these people from Texas got together and basically wrapped their arms around me to get me better. That’s why I wanted to put the purple, which is the color of my cancer ribbon, around the state of Texas because it symbolizes what the people of Texas did for me.”
When Taylor first opened the box of hats, he said it gave him chills because it encompassed his story so well.
Taylor said 100% of the proceeds go to the Testicular Cancer Foundation located in Austin, Texas. Since the fundraiser’s inception, the police department has raised more than $60,000 for testicular cancer awareness. Six out of seven years of fundraising, the Waxahachie Police Department has been No. 1 in the state of Texas for raising money for TCF, Taylor said.
TCF provides education and resources to medical communities, school and young men’s groups. It also provides support for testicular cancer patients and their families.
Along with selling shirts, hats and decals, Waxahachie police officers can donate to TCF and grow facial hair in the month of November. The department also set up a booth at the Bob Phillips Festival to raise money. Taylor said they will have another fundraising event, a rowing competition, in December. More details will be posted on Facebook @WaxahachiePoliceDepartment.
For those who would like to donate, visit https://give.beardpatrol.org/team/waxahachiepolicedepartment or stop by the station, located at 630 Farley St.
TCF focus on education, awareness
The Testicular Cancer Foundation works to increase education and awareness about the disease while also supporting testicular cancer patients and their families.
Waxahachie community services officer James “J.T.” Taylor said TCF can help patients find doctors. For example, if one doctor is unsure of how to handle a situation, TCF can recommend another one who may have more experience and knowledge.
TCF also helps connect survivors.
Every year TCF hosts a summit, which Taylor has attended many times. At the summit, they discuss ideas to raise money for the foundation. There’s also a variety of presentations and breakout sessions, where survivors can talk about what they are going through and help support each other.
Dr. Larry Einhorn, who cured testicular cancer, gave a presentation about the different cures and treatments for testicular cancer the first year Taylor attended the summit. Einhorn and Taylor sat at the same table, and when Einhorn returned to his seat, Taylor asked him why he didn’t include stage four in his presentation. To which, Einhorn responded that stage four is fatal.
“Well, I made it,” Taylor said.
“You’re an anomaly,” Einhorn said.
For more information about TCF, visit https://www.testicularcancer.org/.
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