Fewer than three months after the announcement of the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Foundation on Dec. 3, the foundation now has its first founding partner in The Hartford.

Coach Kay Yow said having an organization step up is important to her and the foundation.

“Everybody believes in it and thinks it a worthy cause and that it’s great for us to be doing it,” Yow said. “But when people step forward and found it first, this is something very different. These are people that don’t just believe, but they really trust in what you’re doing.”

Wade Seward, the vice president and chief marketing officer of The Hartford’s individual life insurance division, said he lost his mother to the disease when she was 44 and is among many who are affected by cancer.

“We are inspired by Kay Yow’s personal story, [and] are proud to support the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Foundation in its effort to eradicate cancers that affect women, and are committed to doing everything we can as a company to improve the lives and longevity of all Americans,” he said.

Yow said she hopes The Hartford is just the first of many organizations to join. While trying to raise awareness, the veteran coach is still leading her team while battling the disease. Currently, she is off chemotherapy and on hormonal treatment.

“I went off of chemo about three weeks ago to give my body a chance to deal with a lot of side issues. And I could go off it because my tumor cell count is down and my CAT-scans of my liver are looking better,” Yow said.

“So this is a great time for me to go off chemo and go on hormonal treatment, which I started two weeks ago. Hopefully I can stay on hormonal treatment for a while.”