Rubber Gloves held the ninth annual Rockers for Knockers benefit concert Friday, raising awareness for breast cancer and donating all event proceeds to the R4K Fund.
Friday night’s event was hosted by local band Lovesick Mary and featured performances by Dreams Unwind, Gaahn, Mark Taylor and DJ Mayo Boy, along with go-go sets by Onyx Fury, Biddie Holly, Christina DeLeon and the Bearded Queer.
Rockers 4 Knockers Dallas began as a way to honor the grandmother of Lovesick Mary’s lead vocalist, Beth Heffernan.
“We wanted to do an event to raise awareness for breast cancer, the importance of checking your breasts, getting your mammograms and doing your screenings,” Heffernan said. “We also just wanted to raise money for research.”
Heffernan’s grandmother, Mary Ferko, was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 70. Doctors told her with medication, she would be cancer-free for five years, but she made it to 10 years.
Her cancer, however, came back when Ferko turned 80 and it metastasized to her brain and spine. After losing her long and hard-fought battle, the event was created in honor of her, Heffernan said.
“We want to pay tribute to the people that are truly impacted by cancer, that’s who this is for ultimately,” Heffernan said. “That’s why we want to give back in a big, big way.”
The ninth production of R4K has paired with The Gracious Mind, a counseling and wellness center in Denton. The fund will give therapy sessions to people who have been impacted by breast cancer through themselves or a family member.
“It’s awesome getting to do stuff out in the community,” said Braden Weinmann, a mental health counselor at Gracious Mind. “With Gracious Mind being mostly a virtual mental health clinic, it’s a good opportunity to engage in the community we want to help build and for a good cause.”
Before Mojo Frankenstein’s guitarist, Mark Taylor kicked off the event with a jazz performance, and there was a vendor market with local merchants set up to donate products for the event’s raffle.
Becca Burns, co-owner of Old Bear Vintage and an event vendor, said she was excited to be at Rockers 4 Knockersto support the community.
“We think that it’s a great cause and wanted to get more involved in the community and thought it would be a good event to participate in,” Burns said.
With next year being the decade mark of Heffernan’s grandmother’s passing, the Lovesick Mary singer said she hopes to see this event get even bigger.
“If it’s this big this year, we just hope to see the event grow,” Heffernan said. “It means a lot to me personally, watching my grandmother suffer through breast cancer twice, so I’m very proud to have so many people involved and supportive.”
Featured Image: Dreams Unwind performs for the Rockers 4 Knockers concert at Rubber Gloves Recording Studio on Oct. 15, 2021. Photo by Elizabeth Bulot