I thought this was an interesting article in today's tulsaworld.com that many here would find interesting. I wish I had known he was performing here a couple of day's ago, I would have gone. Has anyone heard him perform? The article says he will be performing along the route to Chicago. His website is
www.cristofori.org _____________
Cancer survivor puts his feet forward By NELLIE KELLY World Staff Writer He plans to run from Tulsa to a Chicago suburb, performing benefit piano concerts along the way. Two of Martin Berkofsky's aunts and one uncle died of cancer; his father had it; and his sister and an uncle are battling cancer.
So when Berkofsky received a diagnosis of prostate cancer in 2000, he thought he was a goner.
"There's only one thing worse than being told you have cancer, and that's being told someone you love has cancer," he said.
When he surprised himself by surviving, Berkofsky decided to celebrate his 60th birthday by running from Tulsa, where he was treated at Cancer Treatment Centers of America, to the Cancer Treatment Research Foundation in Arlington Heights, Ill., a Chicago suburb. He plans to arrive there Aug. 11.
Along the way, the classical pianist will perform concerts to raise money for the research foundation.
Berkofsky, who lives in Virginia about 50 miles west of Washington, used to jog after concerts so he could sleep following the high of performing.
But after his cancer went away, he increased his running to 10 miles a day.
"I was driving one day and thought I shouldn't be in this car," he said. "I should be out on the side of the road running. It hit me and wouldn't let go of me."
When he found out just how good running made him feel, he decided to raise money for cancer research through running and concerts.
He and Mayor Bill LaFortune ran the first 10 miles of the journey Wednesday to 21st Street and Memorial Drive.
Berkofsky performed Tuesday evening at Cancer Treatment Centers of America to an audience of about 35.
"When you hear him play, you realize how fortunate we all are that such a talent was not lost," said Karen Szabo, a spokeswoman for the center. "That gives us the most satisfaction, that we had a hand in keeping this talent around longer."
Running 860 miles might sound like an unusual goal for a pianist, but Berkofsky is no stranger to quirks.
He earned a Fulbright Scholarship to the Vienna Academy, but he quit after two months, bought a motorcycle and sleeping bag and toured the Alps.
Even though he's balding, one of his girlfriends liked his hair long, so he lets it grow without minding that it sticks out in all directions.
Berkofsky shuns the long coat concert pianists usually wear. He performs in a black shirt and pants.
He loves to start playing piano in his pajamas and not stop until bedtime.
"That's the best kind of day," he said. "Only problem is that it pays about a penny an hour."
During his cancer treatment, he used to walk across the street to Bill Miller's piano store, where Miller encouraged him to practice every day.
Berkofsky founded the Cristofori Foundation in 1982 to help people in financial need. That was the year he spent four months in the hospital recovering from a motorcycle accident.
Doctors didn't expect his right arm to heal well enough for him to play the piano, but it did.
"I decided to earn a modest living, mostly by teaching, and perform concerts for good causes," he said.
With solo performances, ensemble concerts and compact discs, he has helped the homeless, a neighbor who needed a heart transplant, Albanian refugees and a blind girl in Macedonia.
With his run, he hopes to add cancer patients to that list, both by raising research money and by talking to them along the way.
"It's going to be leisurely; no speed records set," he said. "This is about people."
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Nellie Kelly 581-8475
nellie.kelly@tulsaworld.com
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For more
To contribute to Martin Berkofsky’s run for cancer or to his Cristofori Foundation, call (540) 788-3356 or go online to
http://www.cristofori.org/.
