**Participants in the 2024 CoastBusters Walk gather at the starting line at Newport High School. Since 2021, the walk has raised almost $150,000 to support breast cancer patients and their families.**

By CHERYL ROMANO/Lincoln Chronicle

There was no CoastBusters Walk for Breast Cancer in Newport and Florence this year so that the group could mourn the loss of co-founder Sonia Graham. Instead, organizers worked to secure nonprofit status, a move aimed at spurring more future community donations and support.

“After Sonia passed, we thought it was better to devote our energies this year to becoming a 501(c)3,” CoastBusters board president Jeanette Campagna told the Lincoln Chronicle. “Once we received that status in September, it meant that all donations are fully tax-deductible — and we can turn our attention to planning a ‘Comeback Walk’ in her memory in 2026.”

Since its start in 2021, the CoastBusters Walk for Breast Cancer has staged walk-a-thons and other events to support breast cancer patients and their families in the coastal towns of Lincoln and Lane counties. In the years since, the volunteer group has raised almost $150,000 “to help ease the burden of everyday living expenses for local breast cancer patients,” according to a news release.

**CoastBusters leaders in the 2024 Newport walk included the late co-founder Sonia Graham, left, board member Jamie Michel, board president and co-founder Jeanette Campagna.**

The “Comeback Walk” in Graham’s memory will take place next Sept. 26 in Newport and Oct. 3 in Florence. The dates align with national Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.

Now that CoastBusters is a nonprofit, “All donations are fully tax-deductible, and it makes us eligible to both receive and write grants,” Campagna said. Donations to the group are used locally, and “go directly to supporting those affected by breast cancer.”

Donations can be made online, or by mailing a check to: CoastBusters, P.O. Box 1804, Newport, Ore. 97365. All who donate will get a receipt for their tax-deductible contributions.

Businesses interested in becoming sponsors for next year’s walk can contact Campagna directly via email at [email protected].

“We’re so thankful to the coastal communities for all their support,” Campagna said. “The response has been overwhelming in a positive way. When people come out in droves to be part of a CoastBusters Walk, it shows incredible support.”

In 2023, the campaign expanded to the city of Florence. Last year, there were about 100 walkers there, and 150 in Newport.

For updates on next year’s walk, Campagna urged those interested to periodically check the CoastBusters website.