Participants are required to raise $150 through sponsorship or donation in order to register. Sponsors include Inside Tennis, Wilson, USTA Norcal, Revo, Domus and Ray-Ban. There will be food and wine donated by Cafe Primavera, Chart House, Icing on the Cake, California Cafe, Los Gatos Brewing Co. and Andale's.

"We call this 'A Taste of Los Gatos and Saratoga,'" said Joanna Rodgin. "Exhibition matches and a silent auction will make this event extra special, so come out and Play for a Cure." Proceeds benefit the Breast Cancer Fund and the Women's Healthy Eating and Living (WHEL) study conducted at Stanford Medical Center. For info, call (408) 605-2181.

Los Gatos Swim and RC Gears Up For Fight Against Breast Cancer

Suzie Hagey had quite a resume during her tennis heyday. She was a star junior in the early '70s, playing on an international level. In '74, at the age of 16, she made it to the doubles quarters at Wimbledon with Raul Ramirez, getting taken out by none other than Billie Jean King and partner Owen Davidson on Centre Court.

The following year, Hagey was the first woman to receive a Stanford athletic scholarship, in the wake of Title IX. From '75 to '79, she was an All-American at Stanford - the first person to achieve that status for four straight years on The Farm. She won two NCAA doubles championships with partner Diane Morrison, won singles and doubles at the Pan-Am Games and played briefly on the pro tour.

Hagey today is known as Suzie Wall, former tennis pioneer, devoted wife of Joe Wall, mother of six. She's also a breast cancer survivor who, along with dozens of chemo and radiation veterans, will be a source of inspiration at the Second Annual Play for a Cure fundraiser and tennis exhibition at Los Gatos Swim and RC on Sept. 6. The event, the brainchild of LGSRC member Joanna Rodgin, will feature a round-robin tournament and an exhibition involving club pro Michael Jessup.

"Cancer takes away the foreverness of tomorrow," said Wall, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in December '98 and had surgery four days later. "It gives you back a keener appreciation for each day. I'm happy to be around. I feel very lucky."

So does Martha Miroyan of Saratoga, who will also be saluted with dozens of other women at Play for a Cure. Miroyan found a lump in her breast during a routine self-examination in May 2001. Her doctor told her not to worry about it. But the day after Mother's Day, she had a mammogram and was told within hours that she had cancer. After her lumpectomy and recovery, she is sold on the fact that women cannot backburner the issue and make believe it doesn't exist.

"If I had done what my doctor said, I'd be dead by now," said Miroyan, who is on the Play for a Cure committee. "I can't tell women enough that they have to be their own advocate, that they can't be passive about dealing with doctors and that they can't blow off those self-examinations."

Wall has taken part in the Women's Healthy Eating and Living study based at Stanford for the past two years. The WHEL study is a key research vehicle and the beneficiary of Play for a Cure. Miroyan, who met Rodgin at LGSRC, is now on the Play for a Cure committee and has helped with publicity for the big event.

"I volunteered with the Breast Cancer Network for a year and it gave me the idea to get this thing going," Rodgin said. "We're doing this for the WHEL Study and the Breast Cancer Fund, and I can't think of any more worthy causes. These women who have survived cancer are true inspirations. I look at them and marvel at how they've gotten through it and how they are thriving now."

Wall isn't all that active on the courts, but once in a while she dusts off her racket and has a go at it. Recently, she teamed with her brother Ted and made the quarterfinals of the USTA National 40s mixed doubles.

Miroyan speaks for just about every cancer survivor when she says she has a new perspective on life, a new commitment to enjoy every day. "My dear friend who was with me at the worst times had already been affected by cancer in her life, and she said, 'Martha, a year from now you are going to see that this is a gift.' At the time, I said, 'What are you talking about? I have cancer.' But now I understand. I never took time to enjoy things because I was a real spaz, a type-A person. But the little things don't matter now. I take time out to reach out to friends. I've been in touch with many women who have been recently diagnosed. I've grown to be a more compassionate, spiritual person. It's changed my life for the better."