Jul 28, 2025 By Paul Paterra 4 min read

At the height of the pandemic, Judy Caves and Jennifer Petyk sought an outlet to release some pent-up emotion.

They found that release in a place where both are comfortable – the water. Since they could not find any open pools, they took to the Monongahela River. Then, they figured, why not swim for charitable causes?

“I thought, I could swim, we could do a charity swim for the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank,” Caves recalled. “That’s how the charity swims started in 2020. Every year since then we’ve done a swim for a different charity.”

This year, they will swim in the Monongahela River at 7:30 a.m. Aug. 2 for Cancer Bridges, a nonprofit organization where Caves volunteers that is dedicated to providing services for those impacted by cancer.

Caves, 65, of Mt. Lebanon, has had a number of swims in open water, many times surpassing 20 miles in a single outing. She was a distance swimmer at Keystone Oaks High School and anchor of the school’s 4-x-100-meter relay team that competed in the WPIAL championships. Caves then swam for Bethany (W.Va.) College men’s team, since the school did not have a women’s team.

Petyk, 53, of South Fayette, also had a stellar swimming career at Keystone Oaks before moving on to Duquesne University.

Petyk said she jumped at the chance to swim for charity.

“Swimming becomes part of your life, part of what keeps you sane just like any other activity,” Petyk said. “With all of the stresses that came with COVID, not having that outlet became very stressful. Open water is such a different animal than swimming one mile in a pool. Open water is so much more enjoyable. When you have a beautiful sunny day and you’re out in nature and you feel the sun on your back and you see the sights, it’s very serene.”

Other charities that have benefitted from their efforts include Light of Life Ministries, Glimmer of Hope for breast cancer research and pancreatic cancer research.

Joining Caves and Petyk in the “Mission on the Mon” will be Justin Dutta of Squirrel Hill and Libby Ernharth of Fox Chapel. Each of the four have been affected by cancer in some way.

All proceeds from the swim will directly support programs and services provided by Cancer Bridges.

“Cancer Bridges runs over 200 programs a month,” Caves explained. “Twelve women run the whole place. What they’re there for is to support anyone, not just the patient, but the family and children that are affected by anyone diagnosed with cancer. No one goes through cancer alone.”

The quartet will begin at Duck Hollow on Homestead and travel to the Rankin Bridge before returning to Duck Hollow, completing five miles for a swim that’s expected to take about two-and-a-half hours.

“This isn’t any type of race,” Caves said. “We’re not trying to see how fast we can go. We’re all different levels of swimmers so we all want to stay together.”

“This is more about being a community effort,” Petyk added. “We do it in chunks, then wait for everybody to catch up, make sure nobody is cramping, nobody is panicking. One of my first swims, there was panic because of inexperience. This makes it fun that we stay together.”

As is the case with all of our open water distance swims, Judy’s husband, Norman, will accompany the group by kayaking to assist with navigation.

“The river is wild and there’s debris,” Caves said. “When your face is down in the water, you can’t see those things. He has a whistle on his life jacket that he will blow when things are coming our way. He also has the cutest air horn and if a boater or someone on a jet skier wouldn’t see us, he can really make some noise and alert them that we’re in the water.”

Petyk and Caves said swimming for charity provides gratification.

“You look for ways to improve the quality of life for those who are affected by this,” Petyk said. “It’s not just the patients, but the support group too, which is one of the things that makes Cancer Bridges so special.

“To give me a purpose, that just motivates me,” Caves added. “I’ve seen what cancer does to family and friends, and it hurts me. It was drilled into my head in Catholic school that we have to use our gifts. Well, I can swim. I hate cancer and I can give back this way. It gives you a sense of control that you can make a difference.”

Anyone who wishes to make a donation to support the team may do so at https://bit.ly/cbmonriver.