BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS COMPETING AT ARENA NATIONALS FIND COMMUNITY IN CURLING
[EDEN PRAIRIE, MN, October 14, 2025] — Team Connelly from the Wine Country Curling Club, one of the teams representing MOPAC at the 2025 Arena Club Nationals, includes skip Jordan Connelly, Third Ashley Spalding, Second Anne Bonach, Lead Peg Anderson, and Alternate Zoe Kanavas.
But the members of this team share more than just a love of curling and spirited competition—Spalding, Bonache, and Anderson are all breast cancer survivors.
Bonache was diagnosed in October of 2019. Following COVID and treatments, she started skiing before hearing about curling. She attended a Wine Country Learn-to-Curl, where she met Connelly.
“My bone density was low. I needed to get going, be physically active after all the chemo, radiation, and surgeries. Curling has given me a purpose after the diagnosis—breast cancer will not stop me,” said Bonache. “I’m very excited to be a part of this team.”
Spalding was already curling—she started in 2018—when she received her diagnosis at age 36 in May of 2023. She knew that Anderson and Bonache were breast cancer survivors, and reached out to them.
“That was a huge help to me, to have these other people I know to help guide me through the process—that was just priceless,” Spalding said. “When I first came back to the club, I was still weak but I decided nothing was going to stop me from curling, so it’s really cool to be playing at this level now.”
Anderson says the sense of community that is imbued in both the sport and her home club is a big reason she enjoys curling so much.
“One of the things I love about our club is that we also do a lot of off-ice events. Being an older person, it’s great because everybody is included all the time. It’s fun because we have young people and middle-aged people and people like me, but we all seem to get along. That’s what makes it such a great community—we’re all at different places in our life. I can talk to my teammates about planning for retirement, and they can help me work my phone,” she added with a laugh.
Anderson has also supported breast cancer awareness efforts in other parts of the country. She has played in Rice Lake, WI, at that club’s annual Curl for a Cure bonspiel, and will be competing in it again this year.
Bonache added, “I don’t have close family in California, and I was able to build a second family through curling. It’s very special.”
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, reminding us that behind every statistic is a story—a mother, sister, friend, or colleague. Let’s raise our voices, support research, and ensure no one faces this journey alone.
About USA Curling
Founded in 1958 and headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, USA Curling is the National Governing body for the Olympic sport of curling and the Paralympic sport of wheelchair curling in the United States. The mission of USA Curling is to grow, strengthen, and advocate for the Olympic and Paralympic sport of curling in the United States by prioritizing accessibility and programmatic development from grassroots to podium. USA Curling is sponsored by Columbia Sportswear, the Dale’s family of beers, Twin Cities Orthopedics, Training HAUS, Ice, Sports & Solar (ISS), Rock Solid Productions, Jet Ice, and Laurie Artiss. USA Curling is a proud member of World Curling and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee. To learn more, visit usacurling.org.
