WESTOVER, W.Va. — A benefit concert held in honor of the late Tonie Renner Gentile, who passed from breast cancer in early 2023, will be held at the Westover VFW on July 26th at 6 p.m.

Gentile, a beloved individual who grew up in Granville, made it her mission to assist others as she worked as an EMT and firefighter throughout her life.

After her husband, Mark Gentile, noticed a small scar on the top of her neck, both Tonie and Mark Gentile knew this was something serious. Without hesitation, Tonie visited her primary care physician, who further directed her to a cancer center in their residence of Connecticut. She was later diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer.

Unfortunately for Tonie, the cancer had progressed too far within her body for treatment to overcome it. After a short, yet exhausting battle with breast cancer, she passed away on Feb. 7, 2023.

Mark Gentile, Tonie’s husband of 27 years, joined WAJR’s “Talk of the Town” to further discuss his late wife’s legacy and the event that he will be hosting late this month.

“When she unfortunately passed from breast cancer, we wanted to give back to not only her community up here in Connecticut, but back to the community that she actually considered home, which was West Virginia,” Gentile said.

In Tonie’s memory, her family established a concert series that not only supports cancer prevention, but also encourages individuals to screen for cancer routinely. Encouraging early detection, Tonie’s family hopes others get the opportunity to conquer the disease in a timely manner.

“We want to alleviate some of that fear, and make sure people are going out there to get checked early because that’s honestly the most important thing,” Gentile stated. “There are a lot of programs out there now. It’s not the old days where it’s just chemotherapy and radiation.”

Last year, the inaugural event took place in Connecticut, and was quite a success. Raising $10,200 at last year’s event, Mark Gentile and the rest of Tonie’s family aspire to either match or exceed those numbers this year.

Beyond the concert series, Tonie’s family also offers scholarships in her memory — at University High School, in Connecticut and even on a national level.

The benefit concert will be held at the Westover VFW on July 26th starting at 6 p.m. All are welcome to come. The concert will feature artists, including Wade Hayes, Cooper Crossing and Andrew Kidd. A special guest appearance and performance from 10-year-old singer-songwriter, Remy Adair, will occur, as well.