The cancer fighting ‘Candyman’ of Lakeville isn’t stopping any time soon

LAKEVILLE — A Lakeville man is on a 15 year, candy-fueled mission to fund cancer research. 

Fred Reagan, known to some as the “Candyman”, has been raising thousands of dollars for the Jimmy Fund Walk cancer research fundraiser since he started in 2010. At the age of 81, and after about 15 years and 150,000 candy bars sold — he doesn’t plan to stop anytime soon.

“Everybody's been touched by cancer one way or another,” said Reagan. “I just enjoy doing it, and I want to do it as long as I can.” 

The Jimmy Fund Walk is an annual event that raises funds for cancer research at the Boston-based Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Reagan first got involved in the cause with his close friend, Bob Greene, in 2006. Greene’s daughter died from lung cancer that year at the age of 30. He said she left behind a 8-month-old daughter at the time, who graduated from high school last year.

His fundraising team, the Greene team, started walking shortly after Greene’s daughter passed, and Reagan said he joined because he “figured it was the right thing to do.”

By 2010, he began creating his “Candyman” reputation by selling candy bars to raise funds for the cause that has also impacted his own family. His father and sister both died due to cancer.

15 years later, Reagan said he’s now just below 150,000 candy bars sold. Between the candy sales and donations to the Greene Team, he said they have raised roughly $375,000 for the cause to date.

About 30 local businesses partner with Reagan to sell candy bars to fund cancer research at the institute. His candy bar stock includes five flavors of chocolate bars: milk, dark, rice crispies, caramel and peanut butter.

For about three days a week, he makes deliveries to area businesses that include Muckey’s Liquor in Lakeville, Ace Hardware stores in Lakeville and Onset, Harper Lane Brewery in Middleboro and Red Hand Brewing Co. in Lakeville. He also sells bars out of the physical therapy office at the Raynham Athletic Club.

He said his biggest customer is Muckey’s Liquor, since over the past 15 years the store has helped to sell over $65,000 in candy bars. His other customers include longtime friends and area residents who buy smaller orders on a monthly basis. A lot of times he gets a phone call and meets customers at coffee shops in the area to hand off the boxes of bars.

The bars are supplied by a fundraising program through the New England-based Hilliards Chocolates company that provides the bars for $1.25 each, and Reagan sells each candy bar for $3, and two bars for $5. All of the funds go directly to the efforts at the Dana-Farber institute.

He runs his whole candy-bar “hustle” through word-of-mouth sales, and about three coolers in the back of his car that preserve the sweet products.

“People put beer in their coolers, I put candy bars in my coolers,” he said.

Wherever you might find him, he always has at least a couple boxes in the trunk. He said he hopes to sell 180,000 bars in total by the end of the year.

As he passes 150,000 candy bars sold, and with every bar weighing 2.25 ounces — Reagan has sold more than 21,000 pounds of chocolate.

“It's a lot of candy bars,” Reagan said with a laugh.

He said when he is out walking or attending fundraising events and sees the patients he raises funds for, it makes him think of one thing.

“I just think, we’ve got less people dying of cancer now than ever before,” he said. 

At this year’s Jimmy Fund Walk earlier this month, he and his team walked the 44,000 steps along the 6.7 mile Cape Code Canal route. The walk felt good this year, but he “felt a little tired at the end” he said with a chuckle. He said Greene hasn’t walked in recent years due to health issues, but Reagan is happy to continue leading the team. 

He prepares for the yearly walk by getting “plenty of steps in” at his part-time job at Home Depot and also by riding a stationary bike for more than 10 miles a day. He retired from a 41-year-career in management at Sears in 2005. 

“I guess that's why I've had three shoulder operations, one knee operation, and the other knee is getting close to ‘wanting to go’,” he said. “But, I don't know how people can retire and do absolutely nothing.”

He said the mission he’s on — that keeps him physically fit and socially engaged — gives him something to work towards everyday while in retirement. 

“It just keeps me going, one day at a time,” he said.

When he first joined in on the fundraising efforts, he said he never imagined he’d continue doing it for the last 15 years.

“In 10 years from now I’ll be 91, and the [fundraising] numbers are just going to grow bigger. Everybody is so nice and pleasant to work with. It's just very enjoyable. We just keep on rolling forward,” he said.

To buy candy bars, Reagan said the best way is to find them at the “best-stocked” area businesses he works with that include Muckey’s Liquor, Ace Hardware in Lakeville and the Raynham Athletic Club.