Events
Please see our calendar below for more details. Some are held online while others are in-person.
Our interactive online calendar allows you to view events by month, week or day. Click on each event title for more information, including description and details about how to RSVP. Hospicare has a list of online grief resources that may be of assistance.
Throughout the year, Hospicare holds many events and programs, including ongoing grief support groups and special one-time or limited-time sessions. Hospicare also holds fundraising activities and outreach and educational events.
- This event has passed.
17th Annual Women Swimmin’ for Hospicare – Virtual Closing Ceremony
August 8, 2020 @ 9:00 am - 10:00 am
Women Swimmin’ Virtual Community Event!
A Message from the Planning Committee – We’re going the distance!
Whether you’ve been a past swimmer, paddler, Kayak Safety Team member, volunteer, or spectator — or if this is your first year ever participating — you are invited to join us for what promises to be a unique, fun community endeavor. Join us for our VIRTUAL COMMUNITY EVENT Now – August 8. Anyone can participate and you choose your goal and activity.
COVID-19 adds unique challenges to our planning but Women Swimmin’ for Hospicare is no stranger to overcoming challenges. From extreme weather to algae blooms to the bus debacle of 2019 – we persevere time and time again. And we will do so again this year!
Each year, our swimmin’ women set a personal goal. Our lake swimmers travel 1.2 miles across Cayuga Lake. Laps swimmers’ goals are often set by miles traveled or number of laps completed. What makes Women Swimmin’ so special is no matter if you swim 1.2 miles – or 120! — you are going the distance while raising money and awareness for Hospicare & Palliative Care Services!
We understand the importance of this event to so many, and also know that you understand why we need to make some changes to ensure the safety and health of all who participate. That’s why for 2020, we are asking our community to come together and once again, GO THE DISTANCE for Hospicare!
As we’ve done in years past, YOU define what that means, with an added twist. Of course, we hope pools and parks open and provide you with a chance to swim again. But if not, we challenge you to set another goal for yourself — whether that’s logging your steps, taking a daily run, paddling the lake, performing 50 burpees a day, or something else entirely!
In the coming weeks, we will be sharing ideas, and we hope you’ll tell us your creative plans, too.
Hospicare needs us now more than ever. Donations fund nearly 20% of the agency’s operations in a normal year; in an extraordinary year like this one, the generosity of our community is even more critical.
ALL are welcome to participate this year! We can’t wait to come together, while staying apart, and invite you to GO THE DISTANCE! Please dive in with us, and we promise you a swimmingly good time — and an amazing, safe, and fun closing celebration (to be determined by State guidelines) on August 8!
Women Swimmin’ for Hospicare is a community swim—not a race—that raises money in support of Hospicare & Palliative Care Services. At dawn on a Saturday in August, more than 300 women will leave the east shore of Cayuga Lake and swim west to the Ithaca Yacht Club (a distance of 1.2 miles). Nearly 200 boaters will escort them along the way and about 150 volunteer support them on shore. Lake swimming not for you? Women Swimmin’ Laps is an opportunity for women who aren’t able to participate in the Lake swim, to swim any distance they choose, in any pool with a certified lifeguard to fundraise for Hospicare.
Women Swimmin’ is truly a community event! We invite you to visit our website and get involved in a number of ways:
Women Swimmin’ was born out of a conversation between an Ithaca woman looking for a unique activity to mark her 60th birthday and her primary care physician. They decided to recruit other women swimmers and boaters to escort them as they swim across Cayuga Lake, while raising funds for Hospicare. Women Swimmin’ has grown to become the largest fundraiser for Hospicare and a meaningful event throughout the Ithaca community.
Whether the women are swimmin’ in a pool or across Cayuga Lake, the funds they raise go directly to support Hospicare’s work in our community. Through the incredible generosity of our friends and neighbors, who recognize the importance of our mission, we are able to bring medical expertise and compassionate care to all those in Tompkins & Cortland counties who are facing the end of life, as well as support, comfort and guidance for their family members, regardless of their ability to pay. The money raised through Women Swimmin’ also allows us to provide bereavement services to patients’ family members and others in our community who are grieving a loss.
To learn more about Women Swimmin’ for Hospicare, including how you can swim, boat, volunteer or donate in support of this event, please visit womenswimmin.org.
If you are interested in supporting the Swim by becoming a corporate sponsor, please contact womenswimmin@hospicare.org
