{"id":14788,"date":"2026-10-24T22:47:24","date_gmt":"2026-10-25T06:47:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inedc.com\/26\/?p=14788"},"modified":"2026-10-24T22:47:24","modified_gmt":"2026-10-25T06:47:24","slug":"judy-pickett-turns-breast-cancer-battles-into-scholarships","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inedc.com\/26\/news\/judy-pickett-turns-breast-cancer-battles-into-scholarships\/","title":{"rendered":"Judy Pickett Turns Breast Cancer Battles Into Scholarships"},"content":{"rendered":"

CAMERON PARK, Calif. \u2014 Community impact, education and cancer awareness<\/p>\n

For Judy Pickett, surviving breast cancer was only the beginning of a much larger journey. The Cameron Park woman turned her personal battle with the disease into a decades-long commitment to cancer awareness, fundraising and educational opportunities for young people in El Dorado County.<\/p>\n

Alongside her husband, Tod Pickett, she helped establish the Pink Ribbon Breast Cancer Scholarship Program, creating a way for local students affected by cancer in their families to receive financial assistance as they pursue higher education.<\/p>\n

The results have reached classrooms and graduating seniors across the county, from El Dorado and Union Mine high schools to Ponderosa, Golden Sierra, Oak Ridge and South Lake Tahoe high schools.<\/p>\n

According to the program\u2019s official website, the scholarship initiative has awarded more than $175,000 since 2000. The organizers report a total exceeding $180,000, reflecting the growing impact of their work.<\/p>\n

A diagnosis that changed everything<\/h3>\n

Pickett\u2019s story began in February 1997, when she was 33 years old and eight months removed from giving birth to her third child. She was diagnosed with Stage II breast cancer.<\/p>\n

Her treatment included a mastectomy, eight months of chemotherapy and six weeks of radiation, according to her Pink Ribbon Running biography.<\/p>\n

Running eventually became an important part of her recovery \u2014 physically and mentally \u2014 and helped transform a deeply personal struggle into a public mission.<\/p>\n

In May 1998, five months after completing chemotherapy, Pickett participated in her first Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Sacramento. That event sparked an ambitious goal: to compete in 100 races benefiting breast cancer awareness and research throughout the country.<\/p>\n

The disease returned in June 1999, requiring another surgery. In August 2001, she experienced a second recurrence and underwent additional surgery and four more months of chemotherapy.<\/p>\n

Even during treatment, Pickett continued running. Her determination carried her through races, surgeries and physical setbacks that might have ended another athlete\u2019s ambitions.<\/p>\n

By May 2004, she had completed her 100th race. Her official biography now reports that she has participated in 158 breast cancer-related races across 46 states, running alongside more than 2.5 million participants, including approximately 305,000 breast cancer survivors.<\/p>\n

Pickett\u2019s experience as a three-time survivor helped shape a mission that extends well beyond the finish line.<\/p>\n

Turning personal hardship into educational opportunity<\/h3>\n

In 1999, Tod and Judy Pickett established the Pink Ribbon Breast Cancer Scholarship Program as an extension of the Pink Ribbon Breast Cancer Fund.<\/p>\n

The program takes a different approach from traditional academic or athletic scholarships. Rather than focusing primarily on grades, test scores or sports performance, it recognizes students whose families have experienced cancer.<\/p>\n

The program describes its purpose in a particularly direct way: \u201cIt is a scholarship that no one wants to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

That statement captures the circumstances behind the award. A student’s eligibility depends on having an immediate family member living in the household who has been diagnosed with cancer of any type. Applicants also write an essay describing lessons learned from that experience, and a parent or surviving family member must verify the diagnosis.<\/p>\n

The scholarship is intended to help ease the financial burden of college for families already dealing with the emotional and practical demands of cancer.<\/p>\n

For students in El Dorado County, that support can make a meaningful difference at a pivotal moment \u2014 the transition from high school to college, professional certification or another educational pathway.<\/p>\n

Six local high schools, one shared mission<\/h3>\n

The Pink Ribbon scholarship program serves graduating seniors at six high schools across El Dorado County:<\/p>\n