Some neighbors leave a mark not just by how they lived, but by what continues long after they’re gone. In Lakewood, Chase Griffith is one of those neighbors.

Chase was diagnosed with Chromophobe Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC), a rare form of kidney cancer, in 2019. After his kidney was removed, the family hoped the worst was behind them. Two years later, the cancer returned—this time metastasized. Chase passed away in 2025, but his fight sparked something powerful: a community-driven nonprofit that is changing the future of research for this overlooked disease.

Chasing A Cure was founded in 2023 by Chase, his wife Meghan, his best friend Ben Woodard, and Ben’s wife Alyson. All four met while attending the University of Oklahoma and now call Lakewood home. What began as a conversation between friends—sparked by Chase’s determination to help others facing the same diagnosis—quickly grew into a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to funding research for Chromophobe RCC.

Chromophobe RCC accounts for only about five percent of kidney cancer tumors. While many cases behave less aggressively, a subset spreads rapidly and has historically been misunderstood as “favorable,” leading to a severe lack of research funding and targeted treatments. As therapies for more common kidney cancers advanced, outcomes for patients with metastatic chromophobe RCC remained grim.

That imbalance began to change in 2021, when patients and families helped launch the Kidney Cancer Research Alliance’s Chromophobe Research Grant Program—the first initiative ever created specifically to fund research for this rare subtype. The program is uniquely patient-driven, with patients helping set priorities and even selecting grant recipients alongside medical experts. Since its inception, grants have funded chromophobe-specific research at leading institutions including Dana-Farber, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Institute.

Chasing A Cure exists to fuel that momentum. Every dollar raised through the organization’s events goes directly to the KCCure Chromophobe Grant Program. Since hosting its inaugural golf tournament in the spring of 2023, Chasing A Cure has raised more than $250,000 for research—an extraordinary achievement for a grassroots nonprofit rooted right here in East Dallas.

Those fundraising events are anything but ordinary. An annual golf tournament at Tenison Park, a Tennis 105 event at Lakewood Country Club, and a fall clay shoot in Oklahoma are intentionally designed to feel less like traditional fundraisers and more like neighborhood celebrations. Expect DJs instead of quiet fairways, creative competitions, unexpected surprises, and local food people actually want to eat. From choosing tee boxes with a game of cornhole to team-themed tennis matches, the focus is on joy, connection, and making meaningful work feel accessible and fun.

That spirit reflects Chase himself—and the community that rallied around him.

Today, Chasing A Cure remains deeply personal. Ben left his career in cybersecurity in 2024 to focus full-time on the organization. Both the Griffith and Woodard families are fully involved, including their children—Fletcher (14), Harrison (12), Arch (14) and William (11)—who attend local Lakewood schools and grow up witnessing what it means to turn loss into purpose.

Headquartered in Lakewood, Chasing A Cure is a testament to what happens when friendship, resilience, and community come together. It is proof that meaningful change doesn’t always start in laboratories or boardrooms—sometimes it starts with neighbors refusing to let a story end too soon.

To learn more, donate, or get involved, visit chasingacure.life. Because in Lakewood, doing good should also feel good.