A couple hit hard by cancer are giving back to the community that helped them through their illnesses.

Jenna Martin, 41, spent eight months battling ovarian cancer.

Her 36-year-old husband John was diagnosed with a brain tumour only two days after she was given a clean bill of health in February. “We received a lot of support from the community,” said Mrs Martin. “Some people raised funds for us. Now we are paying it forward.”

The Martins are part of a team hosting a special fundraiser in aid of Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre tonight.

They’re also part of a 19-member team participating in the charity’s Relay for Life next week.

Cancer survivors and supporters raise money for cancer treatment by walking around a track for 24 hours as part of the fundraiser. Tributes are also paid to people who have died from the disease.

“Our team is called Team Martini — Shaken Not Stirred,” said Mrs Martin. “That is exactly how cancer has made us feel, shaken, but not stirred.”

Team Martini’s fundraiser tonight takes place at Cafe Ten on Dundonald Street. The Martins concocted their own drink for the event, a non-alcoholic martini tasting. The first person to correctly guess two ingredients wins a prize and the opportunity to name the drink. It’s hoped that a silent auction will also raise funds.

The Bermuda Cancer and Health Centre hopes to raise $500,000 through Relay for Life. The funds will be used to buy radiation treatment equipment and to build a radiation vault at their Paget headquarters. At the moment, residents needing radiation must go overseas. The project will cost between $6.5 and $7 million and will probably be finished by the end of the year.

Mr Martin’s low grade two tumour was surgically removed at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. He did not require chemotherapy or radiation although he might if it grows back. “If John ever does need radiation, and our fingers are crossed that he won’t, it would be so great if he could do it in Bermuda and not have to go away,” Mrs Martin said.

“Radiation might be a 20-minute doctor’s visit, but the patient might have to go every day for a week or once a week for six weeks. Everyone’s treatment is different. This machine would be a blessing for so many people.”

The couple had to leave their six-year-old twins, Bryson and Savannah, with family while they were treated overseas.

Mrs Martin said their cancer experiences have made them closer as a couple.

“Now we sometimes argue over who had the worst cancer experience,” she said with a laugh. “I say, ‘But I was sick for a lot longer than you. I could hardly walk. I couldn’t do anything’. He says, ‘Yeah, but I sometimes wonder what’s going on in my head’. That’s where the bonding comes from in this experience.”

Mrs Martin had to take care of her husband and their children after his surgery. It was especially difficult as she was still weak from her chemotherapy treatments.

“After we got back from Baltimore, I was exhausted from having to become the caregiver again,” she said. “My energy level was not where it is now. I went from being taken care of to the one taking care. I just said, as a mom, I am going to power through and get this done. Eventually, as John started to get better, I thought ‘Good, I can just relax’ and that is when the emotions came on.”

The Martins are now back to their normal lives. Mrs Martin, a former hairdresser at Newstead Belmont Hills Golf Resort and Spa is now working in reception there. She plans to return to her old job this autumn. Mr Martin runs a water sports business, Axis Adrenaline.

Mrs Martin said her own experience with cancer helped her to cope with her husband’s illness.

“I think I cried once,” she said. “I wasn’t sure what was going to happen to John, but I was like ‘Okay, wait, how can I deal with this?’ Having just gone through cancer treatment, we were still in hospital and doctor mode. I think it would have been worse if it had happened a year after I received the all-clear. Then it would have been a punch to the stomach.”

• Tonight’s tasting is from 6pm to 10pm. There is a $10 cover charge. The Martins will sell their concoction at Relay for Life, which takes place May 29 to May 30, on the North Field at the National Stadium.

• For more information see relayforlife-bermuda.org.

• To donate to Team Martini see runsignup.com/martini or look for them on Facebook. Read the blog Mrs Martin kept during her cancer journey at www.respecttheo.blogspot.com.