In April, a longtime skydiver at Vermont Skydiving Adventures in Addison read the article “Why Marian Sparks Jumps for the Rose (and Why You Should Too, No Matter Where You Live)” by Annette O’Neil in Parachutist. Inspired, he contacted JFTR founder Marian Sparks, who lives in Texas, and began fundraising efforts on behalf of the organization, which provides mammograms and other breast cancer services to those without insurance. Before long, the money began to pile up and he started sending her envelopes full of checks!

On July 14, Vermont Skydiving Adventures held a day of celebration to recognize those fundraising efforts, which resulted in donations totaling more than $22,000 for Jump for the Rose. Sparks decided to attend the event to give her thanks. DZO Ole Thomsen and the crew at VSA—all wearing pink shirts—welcomed her and erected beautiful pink JFTR wind blades provided by Performance Designs.

The weather was cloudy and rainy, but the mood was upbeat as Sparks enjoyed getting to know everyone at the family drop zone and attended a yoga class run by one of the jumpers. When the clouds parted briefly, Sparks was finally able to get in the air for a hop-and-pop. “The view of Lake Champlain, the Adirondack mountains and Canada was so amazing!” Sparks said. “I never dreamed I would ever get to see such a beautiful sight under canopy!”

The next Jump for the Rose event is the ninth annual Pinkfest Boogie at Skydive Spaceland–Houston in Rosharon, Texas, October 13-14. More information on the boogie, as well as the cause it supports, is available at jumpfortherose.org or by emailing Sparks at marian@jumpfortherose.org.