WHO WE ARE
Our Mission
Support. Love. Awareness. Three words that guide every grant we give, every event we run, and every family we show up for.
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Support
Direct financial assistance for families in crisis. Helping cover medical bills, travel, groceries, and the everyday costs that don't pause for a diagnosis.
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Love
Community-driven care that shows up. Resources, support groups, and the presence of people who see you and refuse to let you walk this road alone.
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Awareness
Pink isn't the only color. Every cancer has a ribbon. Every diagnosis has a story. Every person deserves to feel seen, supported, and remembered.
WHY MANY COLORS?
Every ribbon has a story. We're here for all of them.
The name "The Horse of Many Colors" was born from the same place our mission was. A recognition that cancer doesn't discriminate. It doesn't choose a type, a body, or a community. And neither do we.
Pink ribbons are important. So are yellow, teal, gold, orange, and every color on the awareness calendar. We exist because every person facing any cancer deserves to have someone show up for them with resources, with love, and with the kind of community that stays.
HOW WE STARTED
Mona and the Pink Guitar
as told by Mona, co-founder
We began in 2013, at the Tough Enough to Wear Pink Rodeo during the Mountain Valley Stampede in Heber Valley. That night, Bob McPhie rode into the arena holding a guitar — not just any guitar, but a pink one. I assumed we were in for a song. Instead, as the night wound down, the announcer revealed he'd be auctioning off that guitar to raise money for local families facing cancer — money that would stay right here in our community, covering the small expenses that add up fast.
My husband, sitting behind me, nudged me as the bidding climbed. "Aren't you going to bid?" I didn't have a thousand dollars, I told him. He just looked at me — the kind of look that sees straight into you — and said, "In memory of your mom." She'd passed away from bone cancer just the week before. My hand went up, and before I knew it, the guitar was mine.
"I was so excited! Funny thing is, I don't even play the guitar."
That night's money was split between three local families dealing with cancer. Knowing I'd played even a small part in easing their burden was a feeling I've never forgotten. A few months later, Jon Provost asked if I'd take over the Tough Enough to Wear Pink night going forward. I said yes — I knew we could raise even more.
Traditionally, wearing pink raises funds for breast cancer. I wanted to include every type of cancer in our fundraising. That's how The Horse of Many Colors Cancer Foundation was born — built to help as many families as possible, no matter what they're facing.
WHAT WE AIM TO SOLVE
The Gap No One Should Fall Through
Cancer doesn't just change a person's health. It can change everything around them. Medical bills pile up. Treatment means travel. Work gets missed. Groceries, rent, and utilities still need to be paid. That's where we come in.
The Horse of Many Colors exists to bridge that gap: providing immediate, direct financial support and community-driven care so that no individual or family has to face cancer alone or unsupported. A cancer diagnosis doesn't have to become a financial crisis, too.
The reality families face
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Medical bills pile up even with insurance — out-of-pocket costs average over $5,000 per year.
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Treatment travel adds weekly costs that insurance never touches.
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Rent and utilities don't pause because someone got a diagnosis.
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Help comes too late — most aid programs take months to process. We move faster.
OUR REACH
Our Community Doesn't End at County Lines
Every family we've helped has a connection to this valley. Maybe they grew up here. Maybe their family still lives here. Maybe they spent every summer here, went to school here, or built a lifetime of relationships here. The valley travels with its people. That's why we've been able to support families in nine states and beyond without ever losing sight of where we came from. Cancer doesn't care about geography, and neither do we.
If you or someone you love has a tie to Wasatch County, even if it's been years since you were here, you may be eligible for support from The Horse of Many Colors.
"When we say 'local,' we mean the people who belong to this community in the way that actually matters: through relationships, shared history, and the kind of bonds that don't break just because someone moved away."
Have a connection to Wasatch County — even if you moved away?
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