Faith Fancher - Oakland

Faith Fancher ¹

Faith Fancher (August 23, 1950 – October 19, 2003) was a wonderful woman, and an inspirational award winning journalist; a true trail-blazer. A summa cum laude graduate of the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Faith opened many doors as the first African-American female reporter at WBIR-TV in Knoxville, Tennessee. She honed her skills with stints at NPR, CNN's Washington, D.C. office, National Black Network, and WSM-TV in Nashville. In 1983 Faith moved to the Bay Area and became a top reporter at KTVU-Channel 2 in Oakland, where she remained until her death in 2003.

Her Public Battle

As a journalist and highly visible Bay Area personality, Faith understood the power of information, so when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1997, she chose to turn her private battle into a public forum to raise awareness about the disease. "Faith's Story," a multi-part series aired on KTVU-Channel 2, and followed her journey from surgery through treatment. The series, won a number of awards including the American Medical Association's International Film prize, the "Freddie," for outstanding reporting on cancer treatment.

Faith's Legacy

Throughout her six-and-a-half year battle against breast cancer, Faith worked tirelessly in the effort to raise awareness and money to help grassroots programs benefiting low-income women with breast cancer. Faith was truly an inspiration to others, but especially to the members of "Friends of Faith". We have committed ourselves to continuing the work she began and to follow through with her vision.

Special note: Faith was sustained throughout her illness by her many family members and friends, but she was especially uplifted by the love and devotion of her husband William Drummond. ¹

9th Annual Breast Cancer Challenge - August 17, 2013

Friends of Faith will be conducting the 9th Annual Faith Fancher Breast Cancer Challenge on August 17, 2013 at Oakland's Lake Merritt. for more information visit http://www.faithfancher5k.org