Mary Jo Brady and Susie Wilkes met every month at the Derby Applebee’s.

They ordered iced tea with lots and lots of lemon, chicken quesadillas to share and several orders of chips.

During these lunches, the best friends shared a lot of laughter. More recently, as Brady got deeper and deeper into her fight with cancer, they shared a lot of tears.

Brady died July 4, and Wilkes, a personal trainer at the DRC, is doing something to honor her friend.

The Derby Recreation Commission (DRC) and Victory in the Valley have partnered for Fitness Mania, an event that will be held on Sept. 6 to honor Brady, a fitness instructor and personal trainer at the DRC, and to raise awareness and funds for all cancer patients and survivors.

“The event that day is to honor my best friend, Mary Jo Brady,” Wilkes said. “For her bravery and strength through a fight that ended with her last breath on the Fourth of July.  The proceeds will benefit all that Victory in Valley assist through this battle of cancer. It helps the families and the survivors as they battle the hardest fight they will ever face.”

While looking back on her friendship with Brady, Wilkes had to sift through tons of memories they two had together.

“The best memory I have – the one that I would like to share ­–  is one that most all of us here at the DRC remembers most,” Wilkes said. “She always had a list – as her illness progressed she would focus on her short-term list and long- term list. In the short term, she wanted to get up, prepare for the day, and be able to teach a half hour Pilates class in the afternoon. In the long-term, she wanted to get back to work at Spirit, to play with her grandkids more, and to walk Riley (her dog) again.

“She was amazing to me. You have to understand, she came to teach even when she was in her second bout of her illness, when the cancer had gone into her bones, she still kept going. She never quit teaching here. To have cancer, put your bandanna on and come in and teach Pilates. That’s amazing to me.”

Brady taught Pilates and yoga at the DRC for over 20 years.

“When she was first diagnosed with breast cancer, she continued to teach her classes through her entire treatment,” Wilkes said. “Just as soon as she could call herself a cancer survivor, she was again diagnosed with cancer, this time affecting her lungs, liver and bones.

“In January, the doctors gave her two weeks to two months to live.”

Even with that grim prognosis, those at the DRC say Brady continued to teach Pilates every week, not missing one class while undergoing several different treatments and therapies.

“As the cancer began to pull on her health she focused on Pilates more and continued to teach even through this spring session,” Wilkes said. “As she lost her hair two different times in the past two years she would wear her bandanna in bright colors to match her shirts – always pressed and neat – she would come in as if she didn’t have a care in the world. She told me often that teaching keeps her strong and focused. Mary Jo was always up and happy – when she was well she was very strong physically. She taught a step class that had sports drills and interval work formatted into the class, she always was looking to do the class better. She was certified in kickboxing, Pilates, group fitness, and was a personal trainer. She loved to lift weights because she loved the way it made her feel strong.”

“She is truly an inspiration to her students and fellow instructors,” Fitness Mania co-organizer Shelly Callahan said.

In response to that inspiration, the instructors and other class participants wanted to do something in honor of Brady’s courage.

“It was that desire that spawned the creation of Fitness Mania as an avenue to support an organization that supports others with the same struggles as Mary Jo,” Wilkes said.

Fitness Mania will showcase the many fitness classes offered at the DRC, including water aerobics, yoga, Pilates, spinning, step, Zumba, hip hop hustle, turbo kick, weight toning classes, and boot camp, to name a few.

“We at the DRC are very passionate about this event because Mary Jo was a very good friend of ours,” Wilkes said.

Participants of Fitness Mania can, for a $25 donation, attend as many fitness classes as they care to experience the day of the event. All net proceeds will benefit Victory in the Valley, a non-profit cancer support organization with a support group in Derby.

“You have this great opportunity to sample different modes of exercise,” Wilkes said.
“Mary Jo wanted the event to be fun, so that is what we are going to do. You can choose to just come at the time that the class you are interested in is going on.  Try the half hour of yoga, palates, step, weights, water, Zumba, etc and then visit our hospitality room full of goodies.  Or show up and enjoy the entire morning.  There will be two to three different classes going on at the same time. 

“A great example of your morning could be to start out with a water class, change and go get something to snack on, get ready for a weight class, than stay over for a relaxing yoga class. There are so many ways to enjoy the morning I could go on forever.”

The event is intended to raise funds and awareness of all cancer patients and survivors, honoring their bravery and courage during their tough fights.

 “But on a personal level, the DRC instructors and community volunteers are donating their time and talents at Fitness Mania to honor one of our own: Mary Jo,” Callahan said.

Victory in the Valley, a non-profit organization dedicated to meeting the needs of cancer patients and their families from initial diagnoses through treatments and beyond,  will receive all of the proceeds from the 2008 Fitness Mania.

“When we started planning the event, Mary Jo was on the committee, coming to meetings, and consulting with me on her thoughts on how to make it successful. We started Fitness Mania because Mary Jo was involved with Victory in the Valley and attended the camp with Denise Madison for two years. She always thought they did such a good job helping people as were going through the journey with cancer.”

Madison, who teaches general yoga at DRC, is co-coordinator of the children’s group with Victory in the Valley, serves as a Seventh Friend for Victory in the Valley, works with therapy dogs with Derby veterinarian Dr. Rosen for Canine Friends, and coordinates the making of quilts of cancer patients by Derby Senior Activity Center quilters at Sunflower Quilt Shop, introduced Brady to Victory in the Valley.

“I do a little bit of everything,” Madison said with a laugh, “Anyway, I introduced Mary Jo to Victory in the Valley. Her positiveness through the whole experience stuck with me. She was willing to share and help others going through the same journey.”

This year, Victory in the Valley will be celebrating 25 years of providing cancer support to those living with cancer, both patients and their families. All services provided are free of charge and are supported through local donations and special events such as Fitness Mania.

“When she was in her first fight with breast cancer she would tell me how much she worried about bone density,” Wilkes said. “Mary Jo was very knowledgable and knew what the chemo and cancer was doing to her once strong body. During chemo in the year of her fight against breast cancer she was so tired after working at Spirit all day and then teaching two nights a week that she didn’t have any energy left for any type of strength training.  So she had this great idea that I thought was fabulous – she would carry a backpack and put in one book – she thought as she would carry that bag from the car to this place or that she would start to build more muscle. She would add a book as she got stronger.

“What a great idea. She never ever quit fighting. That is why this event is so important to all of the instructors here at the DRC. On the day of Fitness Mania, in a small way, we want to fight with just half the strength that MJ had. Her energy and love will always with us here at the DRC.”

For more information about Fitness Mania, contact Wilkes at Susie@derbyrec.com.

For more information about the Derby Area Cancer Support Group, which meets on the second Thursday of each month at Woodlawn United Methodist Church, contact Mike Showalter at 788-4407, Dale Holcomb at 788-3696, or Joy Mitchell at 789-0445.

In addition, event organizers are currently looking for local businesses to help with donations for Fitness Mania, including coupons, gift certificates, and food products for the hospitality room, door prizes, and registration bags for the event day. Donations can  be mailed to the DRC, 801 E. Market/PO Box 324, Derby, KS 67037, attention: Fitness Mania Committee.

“The benefits of Fitness Mania are amazing,” Wilkes said. “It is a chance to give to an amazing group that does so many wonderful things.”