On Allyn Udell’s 45th birthday, she received a diagnosis of multiple myeloma, a cancer that affects white blood cells in the body. She was told that only 50% of patients survived three years of treatment but went on to survive 21 years.
After she died in 2018, Allyn’s husband, Ira Udell, knew that he wanted to honor her legacy by raising awareness of the disease. As part of that effort, the fifth-annual Allyn P. Udell Hello Dolly Foundation Walk will take place on Sunday, Sept. 7, at 10 a.m. at Garvies Point in Glen Cove.
“The walk is more than a tribute—it’s a way for our community to come together and make a difference in the lives of patients who need help now,” the organization said in a release. “By walking with us on Sept. 7, you’re helping provide real support to real people.”
After his wife’s death, Ira Udell said he sat down with his three children and began to brainstorm how they could help multiple myeloma patients in the future.
“We really need to think about how do we continue her legacy?” Udell recalled saying.
Udell, a Glen Cove native, said he and Allyn met in New Orleans in 1970. He said that in a matter of months, the two decided to get married.
“It was love at first sight,” he said.
After Allyn’s multiple myeloma diagnosis in 1997, she was treated in Arkansas based on innovative research for the disease, including stem cell collection, surgeries and steroids.
Now, Udell said the foundation partners with John Theurer Cancer Center, Northwell Health Hospice Care and the Tulane Cancer Center, where funds are allocated to meet patients’ needs, like transportation and medication costs. He said representatives from each of the facilities will attend the walk.
He said the foundation also partially funds the Allyn P. Udell Creative Medical Scholars Endowed Fund at Tulane University.
Udell said the foundation chose to help students and patients so that it could see its impact and progress.
“We know how individuals are being impacted,” he said.
Udell said that in the past few years, the foundation’s walk has drawn an average of 200 attendees. He said the event will offer a selection of food trucks, and that proceeds from the fundraiser will support the organization’s mission to treat multiple myeloma.
Udell said that despite her diagnosis, Allyn had been a “cheerleader” for all of those around her and volunteered to help others diagnosed with multiple myeloma.
“She was always that glass-half-full, never-empty type of person. That’s the way she lived her life until she passed away,” he said.
For more information on this year’s Hello Dolly Foundation Walk, visit www.hellodollyfoundation.com.
