Utpadel leads ‘Musicians Against Cancer’

Todd Utpadel can still barely believe it happened.

After creating “Musicians Against Cancer” and partnering with the BP Cancer Group. he said he had an initial goal of raising $5,000 in 2024, he actually brought in $50,000 worth of donations.

Over the past year, he’s also learned more about the battles people and their families are facing after a cancer diagnosis, and if anything, says he’s more determined than ever. He is continuing his “Tips Against Cancer” campaign in 2025, except rather than setting a dollar amount as his goal, he says the mantra has become “If not us, then who?” And “If not now, then when?”

Utpadel is quick to interject, “This is not about me, and I’m not doing it alone.”

A lifelong musician and a founding member of the well-known Snowy River Band, Utpadel says he feels energized and fulfilled when he brings enjoyment to others with his music. The 1978 Ellendale-Geneva High School graduate has been booking performances across the region for decades.

Since beginning Tips Against Cancer, when he performs, he lets audience members know any tips they put in his bucket during the evening will be donated to the Blooming Prairie Cancer Group (BPCG), an organization which battles cancer on two fronts simultaneously.

Blooming Prairie resident Cheri Krejci, a 1975 Graduate of Ellendale-Geneva High School and a childhood neighbor to Utpadel’ s family, explains BPCG was founded in 2000; she has been one of its board members since 2002. The group benefits from fundraisers operated by many different individuals and organizations, among them the Ellendale fire department. 

Krejci reports that, in 2024, BPCG donated $85,000 to the Eagles Cancer Telethon, $85,000 to the Hormel Cancer Research Institute, and more than $65,000 directly to individuals and families impacted by a cancer diagnosis.

Utpadel mentions he has designated the money he raises for that last category, the direct aid. While he acknowledges the value and importance of research, he explains his decision to form Musicians Against Cancer came about because it seemed to him cancer was all around him, disrupting people’s lives and draining their finances.

“There are people fighting cancer right now who won’t benefit from any cures or treatments the research might find,” he observes. “But these funds will have helped make their lives a little easier.”

However strongly Utpadel says he felt about fighting cancer as he began his organization back in the fall of 2023, he says his feelings have grown stronger since then. For one thing, he has been in a position to hear about even more cancer victims and their experiences, some of which leave him marveling at people’s strength and resilience while his heart breaks for their circumstances.

Along with that, Utpadel himself was diagnosed with colon cancer in April. Doctors informed him he faced 10 rounds of chemotherapy and six weeks, 27 doses, of radiation treatments. “They asked me what my biggest fear was,” he remembers.

“I said I didn’t want to miss any of the 20 bookings I had arranged in the coming months.”

When doctors warned it would be very difficult to keep all the appointments, Utpadel jokes, “I took it as a challenge.” 

By the end of 2024, he says smiling, he had completed the treatments on schedule and managed to fulfill 46 bookings, never having defaulted on any. But he goes on to say, it was far from easy.

“When it hits, it hits,” he comments.

He remembers there were times his hands were swollen, making it difficult to play his guitar. “Those treatments really wipe a person out. There were plenty of times I would get home and go straight to bed.” 

Much of the credit for his success, he says, goes to his wife Sherry for having taken on extra tasks around their home on the east side of Geneva Lake. He expresses gratitude to his employer, Owatonna Motor Company for the flexibility he was given both for medical treatments and performances.

As 2025 proceeds, Utpadel says he is hoping to diversify his performances across a variety of venues. He has an “all gospel” set, he mentions, which other have encouraged him to present more often. He says he will be looking for churches to host the “All Gospel” event, suggesting his 90-minute performance might serve well as a prelude or follow-up to another church event.  He of course also plans to continue in some of the locations where his fans are used to seeing him. One of his most consistent is Spare Time in Owatonna which he finds very family friendly because in addition to the bar, there are a bowling alley and a video game room. Noting that his schedule is usually published on his Facebook page, he says he appears at the Albert Lea Moose Lodge quite consistently. 

Utpadel also emphasizes it is not his tips alone which created such success in 2024. He mentions numerous organizations, including his employer and the Moose Lodge, which committed to matching his tips for a given month, effectively doubling people’s donations. When an organization does that, Utpadel puts its name on a banner which is displayed during all his performances. Individuals and organizations also occasionally offer to match tips for a single venue or event. And some have sponsored in honor of or in memory of a loved one. He says his first banner is almost full so if anyone is interested, they are to let him know—last year two banners were needed to display all the sponsors, and he will do as many banners as needed.

Regarding his own battle with cancer, Utpadel expects an update in about three months regarding how successful the program of treatment has proven to be.

“I don’t know what this year holds,” Utpadel observes. “I do know, though, that every dollar I raise and every person the money helps is a reason to celebrate.

“So, I’m going to keep on celebrating. Quitting is not an option.” Then he repeats his guiding questions: “If not US, then who? If not now, then when?”