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When Claudia Garthwait learned about the recent shake-ups to federal research funding, she wanted to do something. “I wondered how the changes and uncertainty would affect cancer research at UVA and if there was anything I could do now to help,” she recalls. 

A few years ago, after her beloved partner, Victoria “Vic” Gee, passed away from a rare and aggressive blood cancer, Garthwait decided to leave a portion of her estate to UVA Comprehensive Cancer Center. Her bequest will create the Victoria Gee Endowment for Cancer Research to support new treatments and cures for blood cancers like Gee’s. While Garthwait’s estate gift will establish a legacy of support for future breakthroughs, her desire to make an impact earlier was growing stronger. That’s when the idea of donating her condo was offered as a unique solution.

Garthwait had already been thinking of moving, but she felt encumbered by the process of selling her home. 

“When a gift officer mentioned that I could donate real estate, I was intrigued. It would save me from having to deal with selling my home or passing that burden on to my executor, who lives in another state. Also, because UVA is a nonprofit, they would not pay capital gains tax on the property, ensuring more of the proceeds would go directly to the causes I wanted to support,” she explains.

Garthwait has designated three areas for immediate funding from the condo sale:

• The majority has been allocated to the Victoria Gee Expendable Fund for Cancer Research.
• This current-use fund is available to fuel promising blood cancer research today, in advance of the ongoing support that will come from her estate-created research endowment.
• The remaining proceeds were divided between the UVA Cancer Patient Care Fund, which helps patients in need of lodging, transportation, and support for other expenses, and the Couric Family Oncology Clinical Operations Support Fund, which supports professional development for oncology staff.

Garthwait says these gifts honor Gee as well as the UVA cancer researchers, doctors, nurses, and patients the couple met during their experience with the disease — a journey marked by fear, but also resilience, compassion, and moments of unexpected grace.

A Challenge They Didn’t Ask For

It was on Christmas Day 2014, that Garthwait and Gee received their life-altering news. After months of uncertainty and testing, Gee had been diagnosed with something they’d previously never heard of: mantle cell lymphoma (MCL). 

The oncologist who diagnosed Gee recommended she seek treatment at UVA Health from Michael E. Williams, MD, an internationally recognized expert in MCL. That advice was critical. 

“I can’t say enough good things about Dr. Williams. He’s an amazing physician, researcher, and person,” says Garthwait.

Gee’s treatment included an intensive regimen of chemotherapy, followed by radiation. The experience was daunting, but what stood out to Garthwait was the exceptional quality of both the medical care and the people delivering it. 

For example, before Gee’s first infusion, Garthwait recalls that a nurse asked if she would like to pray together. Another time, during a painful bone marrow procedure, a physician played Gee’s requested song, Celtic Woman’s “Auld Lang Syne,” on repeat, while Garthwait held her hand and sang along. “I just thought, we are in good hands."

Over time, the hospital became a second home. There were difficult days when Gee didn’t want to go to treatment, when the weight of it all felt unbearable. But there were also moments of light: laughter with nurses, spontaneous lunches after appointments, even afternoons on the tennis court when Gee felt strong enough to play.

“We celebrated every single good moment,” Garthwait says.

Gee passed away in March 2018, just days after entering hospice care. Her death was, in Garthwait’s words, “absolutely crushing,” but also, in some ways, a blessing in that Gee was released from her pain.

Now, Garthwait finds purpose in honoring Gee’s life by supporting UVA Comprehensive Cancer Center and its efforts to provide the most compassionate, state-of-the-art care while continually discovering and developing new ways to better prevent and treat cancer.

Easing the Burden of Cancer for Others

“I’m incredibly grateful for this support,” says Dr. Williams. “Victoria benefited from some of our research early on. That treatment is now FDA-approved. Patients like Victoria motivate us to continue on our path to progress."

Dr. Williams remembers Gee’s wonderful presence. “She was elegant, keenly insightful, and reflective throughout her treatment,” he said. The incredible support that Gee received from Garthwait and the couple’s community of friends and family also left a deep impression on him.

Garthwait is grateful for the ongoing advances in MCL treatment emerging from the work of Dr. Williams and others. She recently asked Dr. Williams how Gee’s prognosis might differ today. His answer was striking. Previously, the survival of MCL patients was only a few years; now, it’s typically eight to 12 years or more. Today, novel, targeted immunotherapies and even chemotherapy-free regimens generate deep remissions and have the potential to cure patients with MCL.

For Garthwait, that progress underscores the importance of continued support—for cancer research, for cancer care, and for the people navigating the unimaginable. “This is happening right here in Charlottesville. And it matters.”

Garthwait also has high praise for the many physicians, nurses, and staff who provided such comfort, kindness, and expert care to her and Gee, and she remains moved by the other patients and families they encountered at UVA Health’s outpatient cancer clinic, the Emily Couric Clinical Cancer Center.

Once, when Garthwait accompanied Gee to an appointment, she met a patient in the waiting room who’d risen at 3 a.m. to get to town in time for her treatment because she couldn’t afford a hotel. For many patients across Virginia, especially in rural areas, access to care depends on the ability to travel, take time off work, afford childcare, and navigate other logistical and financial complexities. “That stayed with me. I remember thinking, this is what people need help with.”

Through her generosity, Garthwait is ensuring Gee's legacy continues — not only in the memories of Gee’s loved ones, but also through the compassionate care and hope that Garthwait’s support of UVA Comprehensive Cancer Center is helping to make possible.