Moffitt Patients, Leaders and Volunteers Return to Tallahassee

Moffitt Cancer Center leaders, patients, advocates and experts traveled to Tallahassee on March 12 to meet with legislators face-to-face and share the importance of Florida’s ongoing financial support.  

The day was led by President and CEO Patrick Hwu, MD, and founder H. Lee Moffitt and consisted of multiple meetings and activities throughout the state Capitol campus. It was a joyous day, Moffitt said, and one full of gratitude. 

“The coordination and the planning that goes into this day is remarkable,” Moffitt said. “Thank you to everyone who came up from Tampa to share Moffitt’s mission and to our legislators who have supported us and continue to support us as we work to eradicate cancer.” 

Photo by: Colin Hackley - Volunteers, executives and patients attend Moffitt Day in Tallahassee Florida in March 2025 to advocate for continued state funding.

Karen Lu, MD, physician in chief at Moffitt, was among the leaders who attended meetings throughout the Capitol on Moffitt Day. Lu joined the cancer center last summer and this was her first time at the event. 

“It’s so easy to advocate for Moffitt,” Lu said from the Capitol plaza. “And we’ve had an incredible reception from all our legislators here.” 

Moffitt was established by Florida statute and has relied on funding from the state since opening its doors in 1986. Moffitt Day gives the cancer center a chance to show legislators how that funding has changed lives for nearly 40 years. 

Multiple representatives and senators met with Moffitt doctors, advocates and patients to learn about Moffitt’s mission and its advances in research and care for Floridians. It’s a day full of moving parts that could not be done without the effective teamwork of Moffitt team members, said Jamie Wilson, vice president of Government Relations at Moffitt. 

“It’s a coordinated effort and without everyone – the CEO, board chair, our founder, executive leadership, our volunteer coordinators – it wouldn’t happen,” Wilson said. “We can’t thank everyone enough for their participation and passion and to Florida’s leaders who met with us and learned about the amazing things we’re accomplishing at Moffitt.” 

The meetings with advocates and leaders alike were well received by lawmakers, which was especially important to Randy Isaacson, a Moffitt volunteer who wanted to continue advocating for cancer research and care after losing his wife to cancer.  

For him, Moffitt Day is a mission to find something positive following a tragedy. 

“My wife was a patient, and she passed six years ago. It was the most horrible thing that ever happened in my life,” he said before boarding a bus in Tampa to head to Tallahassee. “The question is, how do you turn it into a positive and hopefully make things better for other people?” 

While meetings with legislators were held within the Capitol throughout the day, Moffitt volunteers conducted free skin and head and neck cancer screenings near the steps of the Capitol. The Cure on Wheels riders also completed another 300-plus mile ride from Tampa to Tallahassee, raising $40,000 for cancer research in the process.  

When the cyclists, volunteers and advocates arrived in Tallahassee, Moffitt and Hwu greeted them and thanked them for their ongoing commitment to Moffitt’s mission. 

“It’s always a pleasure and an honor to be here at our state Capitol with you, our volunteers, our advocates and of course our patients to work together to continue Moffitt’s mission of preventing and curing cancer,” Hwu told a crowd assembled in the plaza outside the Capitol.  

During a reception at the Governor’s Club later in the evening, Hwu presented the Moffitt Momentum Award to Rep. Lauren Melo, who was successfully treated at Moffitt for breast cancer. 

“Moffitt had the answers and I truly believe Moffitt saved my life,” Melo said while accepting the award. 

Moffitt Day is a full day of important and difficult work, but it’s also a day of camaraderie, according to Tim Adams, chair of the Moffitt Institute Board of Directors.  

“What we do here will change cancer around the world,” Adams said. “So, 8,000 people a month hopefully won’t continue to die of cancer. The state is vitally important to the continued growth of Moffitt and it’s fun to come up here and thank people for all the state does.” 

Moffitt has a long history of working with state legislators and will continue to work alongside policymakers throughout the legislative session to advocate for Florida’s cancer center. So, while the work is ongoing, Moffitt Day itself is an important day for cyclist Aaron Pacholke. 

“Moffitt Day is about healing,” he said. “Working to heal and make life better.”