In Conversation: Kym Jolstad, PurpleStride Chair, Minnesota Affiliate
Minnesota PurpleStride Chair Kym Jolstad spoke with Community Engagement Coordinator Paula Mukherjee about her inspirations, goals for PurpleStride 2024, and fundraising strategies. This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Paula: What first brought you to PanCAN?
Kym: My mom was diagnosed out of the blue. The first thing I did was Google information on pancreatic cancer, and I saw that we really need more research.
I was very comfortable with raising money for years for the MS Walk. My dad had MS from the time I was 12; he was 35. By the time I was a freshman in high school, he was in a wheelchair. At 12 years old, I started doing the MS Walk where I'm from, near Duluth, Minnesota.
In August 2019, I looked up PanCAN PurpleStride and saw that next month the walk was here in Minneapolis. We were already scheduled to be out of town that week. I thought, “I'm not going to be able to do it this year, but I really want to do something to raise money all year long.” I took the next few months to brainstorm and meet with people, and I came up with Kathie’s Coffee.
The Minnesota Affiliate knew that I was a personal trainer, so when the walk came around the next time during the pandemic, they contacted me and asked if I could do a videotaped warmup. I said, “Absolutely.” Then I thought, “Oh, my gosh, I also need to start a team.” In less than a week, I had raised over a thousand dollars, so I was in the PanCAN PurpleStride Grand Club.
We raised $5,000 that year, within probably a two-week period. I walked with my mom, which was so exciting. I was super excited to do the in-person PurpleStride in 2022 because I was getting so much publicity for Kathie’s Coffee. The Affiliate asked me to do the live warmup and talk about Kathie’s Coffee. It was pouring cats and dogs, but we all went, and I had a big team of people. We raised around $5,000 again.
In 2023, the Affiliate said, “Hey, we need a PurpleStride Chair.” I have done so many races – marathons, 10Ks, 5Ks – and I have been to many of these events. I had seen the opportunity the first year I went to an in-person PurpleStride. I was so excited.
My team had over 30 people and raised almost $18,000. I was so proud of everybody, and I was so excited that we are making a difference. Between the two virtual events and then the two in-person, we've raised $28,000. Kathie’s Coffee has sent an additional $14,000.
For PurpleStride 2024, I'll get more volunteers and more people on my team. We have to come together to make a difference. I have the energy, and I make the time because it's important to me.
Paula: Do you have a background in the coffee industry?
Kym: No, I have no background in it. I’m a nutrition coach, a personal trainer, and a Pilates instructor. I didn't start drinking coffee until I was in my thirties.
Paula: How did it all come together?
My mom loved coffee and built her relationships around it. She would take coffee breaks at work and catch up with her coworkers. On the weekends, we would visit my grandma and have coffee. She would drop me off at Sunday school and she and her girlfriends would go have coffee. When the idea came to me, I was walking my dog with a cup of coffee.
I didn't tell my mom about it at all.
I Googled, “How do you make a bag of coffee?” I talked with a guy in Seattle who gave a ton of information and sent samples. I reached out to roasters.
I asked all of my coworkers: “Who drinks coffee?” They all raised their hands. We're all trainers with early mornings. I then asked who makes it at home, and people were raising their hands. I had multiple people say, “I'll help, what do you need?” and tell me that this is a great idea. Everybody was so positive about it.
One coworker said, “Why don't you do it locally?” I reached out to a client who had opened a restaurant. She said, “I don't know about coffee, but I do know somebody who does.” I met him and told him the story about my mom, and he said, “I have a roaster. He's going to blow your mind.”
I told the roaster what my mom liked, and we did a coffee cupping experience. My husband and I went back, and the roaster said, “Here's your blend. Try it out – do you want something changed?” We said, “Absolutely not.”
All of the art came from graphic artist friends. Three graphic artists that I know didn't even know each other, but they worked on it together. When we were trying to get the bags, Covid began. I said to the roaster, “People are at home and drinking coffee. Let's just get this coffee into bags that you have at your roastery.” Instead of doing the graphics on the bags, the graphic artists made printable labels.
I created a website, which I had never done before, but there are a lot of programs that can help guide you through it. I got my first batch and overnighted a couple bags to my sister. She lived near our mom and brought it over to her. Then I presented the coffee to my mom, virtually. I told her that she has her own bag of coffee, and this is why: I don't want other people to experience what we did. I want to do as much as I can to help with research, building awareness, and raising money so that it doesn't happen to other families.
She was very proud of her coffee. She would always have it to give to her oncologist and nurses, and they would say, “Oh, are you Kathie?”
She lived for almost two years with stage IV pancreatic cancer. She beat the odds. I am so appreciative that she got to see people support Kathie’s Coffee and the community that grew around it.
I was driving around every week for the first few months delivering coffee. It's all new to me – building a website, advertising coffee – but it's been fun to do something different.
Paula: I love this story. One thing that strikes me is that this company is a tribute to your mom and her community relationships, and you were able to start it because of your relationships with your own community.
Kym: That’s how it felt. It happened so fast because I reached out to people who could help me or get me connected with somebody who could help. It really was this community that I live and work in that has made all of this happen.
I moved from a small town to the Twin Cities and made an immediate community here. They also helped raise money for my dad; they had a big fundraiser so that we could get a handicap van for him. People want to do good things, right? We're trying to raise everybody up.
A surgeon that my mom met with said that breast cancer was once where pancreatic cancer is today. It was research funding that brought breast cancer to where it is today. We can do that. We need to do it together and we need more people on board – more volunteers and more people finding something fun like Kathie’s Coffee to bring into their communities.
Paula: What was your mom like?
Kym: My mom was amazing. I loved my mom. She was solid and hopeful and just a lovable lady. She had a really good soul. She loved a lot and had her priorities straight.
She was very creative. We really enjoyed creating things together. She made holidays really fun and went all out. I have an October birthday and I was very into Halloween, and she would always make it really special for me. When I went home for the holidays, it was very loving, calm, and peaceful.
She and my sister took care of my dad. He was in a wheelchair from the age of 40 until he passed away at 64.
She was such a hard worker. She worked at the local credit union from 17 years old until she retired at 67. Definitely loyal, definitely dedicated.
She made me very proud, and I knew how proud she was of me, too.
Our PurpleStride 2024 website is live and the fundraising season has begun. What is your focus right now?
Kym: Getting sponsorships and volunteers, creating teams, reaching out to past teams, and spreading the word. This coming weekend, I’m going to a community festival and I will serve Kathie’s Coffee and bring handouts for people to learn about PurpleStride, how to volunteer, and how they can contact PanCAN Patient Services.
Paula: This will be your second year as PurpleStride Chair. What were some of your favorite moments from last year?
Kym: Everything! It was so cool to see all of the purple. The emcee brought a lot of fun. We got a couple food trucks and we had an amazing singer. I had stumbled upon him playing at an apple orchard. He was fantastic, and I talked with him and grabbed his card.
When I found out I was going to be PurpleStride Chair, I reached out to him. He sent me an email with the invoice that said his mom passed away from pancreatic cancer. I had no idea.
Paula: I saw that your team goal is $16,000. Wow! What is your strategy for getting there?
Kym: I love to encourage everyone on the team to become Grand Club members. I think it would be really fun to be a team where everybody is in the Grand Club. That would be exciting.
I keep it super positive. I send out emails, I send text messages, and I watch when our team members get donations. I try to “hip hip hooray” them and keep them on track, too.
Paula: Thank you, Kym!
Please feel free to contact Kym Jolstad (kjolstad@pancanvolunteer.org) or Paula Mukherjee (pmukherjee@pancan.org) with any questions.
Paula: What first brought you to PanCAN?
Kym: My mom was diagnosed out of the blue. The first thing I did was Google information on pancreatic cancer, and I saw that we really need more research.
I was very comfortable with raising money for years for the MS Walk. My dad had MS from the time I was 12; he was 35. By the time I was a freshman in high school, he was in a wheelchair. At 12 years old, I started doing the MS Walk where I'm from, near Duluth, Minnesota.
In August 2019, I looked up PanCAN PurpleStride and saw that next month the walk was here in Minneapolis. We were already scheduled to be out of town that week. I thought, “I'm not going to be able to do it this year, but I really want to do something to raise money all year long.” I took the next few months to brainstorm and meet with people, and I came up with Kathie’s Coffee.
The Minnesota Affiliate knew that I was a personal trainer, so when the walk came around the next time during the pandemic, they contacted me and asked if I could do a videotaped warmup. I said, “Absolutely.” Then I thought, “Oh, my gosh, I also need to start a team.” In less than a week, I had raised over a thousand dollars, so I was in the PanCAN PurpleStride Grand Club.
We raised $5,000 that year, within probably a two-week period. I walked with my mom, which was so exciting. I was super excited to do the in-person PurpleStride in 2022 because I was getting so much publicity for Kathie’s Coffee. The Affiliate asked me to do the live warmup and talk about Kathie’s Coffee. It was pouring cats and dogs, but we all went, and I had a big team of people. We raised around $5,000 again.
In 2023, the Affiliate said, “Hey, we need a PurpleStride Chair.” I have done so many races – marathons, 10Ks, 5Ks – and I have been to many of these events. I had seen the opportunity the first year I went to an in-person PurpleStride. I was so excited.
My team had over 30 people and raised almost $18,000. I was so proud of everybody, and I was so excited that we are making a difference. Between the two virtual events and then the two in-person, we've raised $28,000. Kathie’s Coffee has sent an additional $14,000.
For PurpleStride 2024, I'll get more volunteers and more people on my team. We have to come together to make a difference. I have the energy, and I make the time because it's important to me.
Paula: Do you have a background in the coffee industry?
Kym: No, I have no background in it. I’m a nutrition coach, a personal trainer, and a Pilates instructor. I didn't start drinking coffee until I was in my thirties.
Paula: How did it all come together?
My mom loved coffee and built her relationships around it. She would take coffee breaks at work and catch up with her coworkers. On the weekends, we would visit my grandma and have coffee. She would drop me off at Sunday school and she and her girlfriends would go have coffee. When the idea came to me, I was walking my dog with a cup of coffee.
I didn't tell my mom about it at all.
I Googled, “How do you make a bag of coffee?” I talked with a guy in Seattle who gave a ton of information and sent samples. I reached out to roasters.
I asked all of my coworkers: “Who drinks coffee?” They all raised their hands. We're all trainers with early mornings. I then asked who makes it at home, and people were raising their hands. I had multiple people say, “I'll help, what do you need?” and tell me that this is a great idea. Everybody was so positive about it.
One coworker said, “Why don't you do it locally?” I reached out to a client who had opened a restaurant. She said, “I don't know about coffee, but I do know somebody who does.” I met him and told him the story about my mom, and he said, “I have a roaster. He's going to blow your mind.”
I told the roaster what my mom liked, and we did a coffee cupping experience. My husband and I went back, and the roaster said, “Here's your blend. Try it out – do you want something changed?” We said, “Absolutely not.”
All of the art came from graphic artist friends. Three graphic artists that I know didn't even know each other, but they worked on it together. When we were trying to get the bags, Covid began. I said to the roaster, “People are at home and drinking coffee. Let's just get this coffee into bags that you have at your roastery.” Instead of doing the graphics on the bags, the graphic artists made printable labels.
I created a website, which I had never done before, but there are a lot of programs that can help guide you through it. I got my first batch and overnighted a couple bags to my sister. She lived near our mom and brought it over to her. Then I presented the coffee to my mom, virtually. I told her that she has her own bag of coffee, and this is why: I don't want other people to experience what we did. I want to do as much as I can to help with research, building awareness, and raising money so that it doesn't happen to other families.
She was very proud of her coffee. She would always have it to give to her oncologist and nurses, and they would say, “Oh, are you Kathie?”
She lived for almost two years with stage IV pancreatic cancer. She beat the odds. I am so appreciative that she got to see people support Kathie’s Coffee and the community that grew around it.
I was driving around every week for the first few months delivering coffee. It's all new to me – building a website, advertising coffee – but it's been fun to do something different.
Paula: I love this story. One thing that strikes me is that this company is a tribute to your mom and her community relationships, and you were able to start it because of your relationships with your own community.
Kym: That’s how it felt. It happened so fast because I reached out to people who could help me or get me connected with somebody who could help. It really was this community that I live and work in that has made all of this happen.
I moved from a small town to the Twin Cities and made an immediate community here. They also helped raise money for my dad; they had a big fundraiser so that we could get a handicap van for him. People want to do good things, right? We're trying to raise everybody up.
A surgeon that my mom met with said that breast cancer was once where pancreatic cancer is today. It was research funding that brought breast cancer to where it is today. We can do that. We need to do it together and we need more people on board – more volunteers and more people finding something fun like Kathie’s Coffee to bring into their communities.
Paula: What was your mom like?
Kym: My mom was amazing. I loved my mom. She was solid and hopeful and just a lovable lady. She had a really good soul. She loved a lot and had her priorities straight.
She was very creative. We really enjoyed creating things together. She made holidays really fun and went all out. I have an October birthday and I was very into Halloween, and she would always make it really special for me. When I went home for the holidays, it was very loving, calm, and peaceful.
She and my sister took care of my dad. He was in a wheelchair from the age of 40 until he passed away at 64.
She was such a hard worker. She worked at the local credit union from 17 years old until she retired at 67. Definitely loyal, definitely dedicated.
She made me very proud, and I knew how proud she was of me, too.
Our PurpleStride 2024 website is live and the fundraising season has begun. What is your focus right now?
Kym: Getting sponsorships and volunteers, creating teams, reaching out to past teams, and spreading the word. This coming weekend, I’m going to a community festival and I will serve Kathie’s Coffee and bring handouts for people to learn about PurpleStride, how to volunteer, and how they can contact PanCAN Patient Services.
Paula: This will be your second year as PurpleStride Chair. What were some of your favorite moments from last year?
Kym: Everything! It was so cool to see all of the purple. The emcee brought a lot of fun. We got a couple food trucks and we had an amazing singer. I had stumbled upon him playing at an apple orchard. He was fantastic, and I talked with him and grabbed his card.
When I found out I was going to be PurpleStride Chair, I reached out to him. He sent me an email with the invoice that said his mom passed away from pancreatic cancer. I had no idea.
Paula: I saw that your team goal is $16,000. Wow! What is your strategy for getting there?
Kym: I love to encourage everyone on the team to become Grand Club members. I think it would be really fun to be a team where everybody is in the Grand Club. That would be exciting.
I keep it super positive. I send out emails, I send text messages, and I watch when our team members get donations. I try to “hip hip hooray” them and keep them on track, too.
Paula: Thank you, Kym!
Please feel free to contact Kym Jolstad (kjolstad@pancanvolunteer.org) or Paula Mukherjee (pmukherjee@pancan.org) with any questions.
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