Scars Are Beautiful
This collaboration beer is brewed in support of those navigating a mastectomy journey and the changes you’re left to face.
Collaboration Beer
A journey and path to healing and self-love.
Started by Jess Klembara and inspired by her experience navigating a BRCA2 diagnosis and double mastectomy, the Scars Are Beautiful collaboration beer campaign was developed to support those facing the same journey.
With each beer sold, a portion of the proceeds are donated to local causes dedicated to early detection and navigating mastectomy aftercare.
While this life-saving surgery is hard and devastating, the scars we carry are a testament to enduring strength and are, in fact, beautiful.
Hello, I’m Jess, founder of Fiercely Brave Foundation, the Fiercely Brave 5K, and the nationwide Scars Are Beautiful collaboration beer. For nearly a decade I have worn many hats in the brewing industry and I’m currently the Marketing Coordinator at Confluence Brewing Co. in Des Moines, Iowa.
This is my story.
In the spring of 2021, just months after my husband and I relocated to Iowa from California to help build a new brewery, I tested positive for the BRCA 2 genetic mutation, AKA the breast cancer gene.
My results showed I had a 90% risk factor for Breast Cancer, an 84% risk for Ovarian Cancer, and a 56% risk for Pancreatic Cancer. With such high risk factors, we needed to move quickly, and just a couple of months later, I underwent a double mastectomy to flat.
I continued to screen for my other high-risk cancers every 3 months (and still do to this day), and in November 2021, I went in for my second surgery to clean up some areas that were flaring up.
While this experience was difficult and devastating, these surgeries saved my life and the scars left behind tell the story of my journey as a previvor. My scars are a beautiful reminder of my resilience and growth through diagnosis, recovery, and learning to embrace a changed body.
Scars Are Beautiful is my way of sharing this experience and it’s an experience I know I share with so many others. This traumatic, exhausting, life-altering-yet-life-saving experience challenges us to see it through and to see the beauty––to see our beauty.
I know with your help, we can not only help save lives through early detection, but we can also help others find and see their beauty.
While recovering from my first surgery, I began my advocacy for early detection and mastectomy aftercare by organizing a 5K race. In October 2021, Fiercely Brave hosted its first 5K (FKA Fighting Through Kinship 5K) which saw more than 500 runners, and raised more than $30,000 for local non-profit cancer organizations.
In 2022, the Fiercely Brave 5K grew into Iowa’s largest breast cancer 5K with more than 600 runners raising more than $40,000.
For many reasons, we had to take 2023 off but we’ll be back better than ever in 2024!
Brew Day Questions
As this project continues to grow, we may have more information or this information may change. We’ll do our best to keep this updated, but feel free to ask any questions through our form below!
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Yes. This will be your beer to sell in your taproom and distribute if you choose to do so.
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The goal is early September.
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The goal is to release in time for Breast Cancer Awareness Month which is October.
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We brewed a West Coast IPA and yes, we will provide the recipe, but you can brew whatever you choose.
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We prefer if your donations went to a local breast cancer organization in your state! Our local communities need our help! It’s up to each brewery how they want to raise and distribute the funds. For example: $1 per pint.
If you don’t have an organization in mind, The Blessing Box Project needs our help as well. This sweet lady named Dawn hand sews pillows and mastectomy shirts. She then puts boxes together and ships them for free to patients who need them!
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Yes! Not only will we provide the label/can artwork template, we’ll also provide social media assets and promotional materials.