At the celebration of life for her brother, St. Charles East Hall of Famer Justin Hardy, who died of stage IV stomach cancer in 2022, Jackie Hardy opened her speech by sharing a question she had been asked by an ESPN producer.

“Do you think someone so young could have a legacy?” she said. “If so, what do you think Justin’s legacy is?”

Four years later, the story and legacy have continued to grow not only in the St. Charles community but across the country. Much of that reach has come through the HardyStrong Foundation, a nonprofit created by his family in his honor.

“It’s a feeling bigger than I know how to put into words, but it’s everything that I would have wanted for him as his sister and also as the leader of this foundation,” said Jackie Hardy, president of the foundation. “I had a very intimate view of Justin’s life from childhood all the way to the end, and the worldwide reach that this is getting is everything that his story deserves.”

One example of that reach is the HardyStrong scholarship program. Managed by Jackie Hardy, along with her brother Nathan Hardy, the foundation has received applications from across the country over the years, as well as some from outside the United States.

“In the first year, it really stayed within the St. Charles East and St. Charles North communities,” Jackie Hardy said. “Fast forward a couple of years, and we have applicants from Florida, California, New York, Michigan and even from Canada. One of our winners from last year was from Kentucky.

“Schools that we don’t have any connection with learned about Justin, his story and this opportunity, and that’s just a really amazing and humbling phenomenon. We don’t necessarily know all the pathways through which that’s happening, but it’s happening.”

While Justin Hardy’s story has gained significant reach beyond St. Charles, the presence of HardyStrong has also continued to grow within the city and into neighboring communities.

For Karen Hardy, Justin’s mother and founder of HardyStrong, the local support has been deeply heartwarming to see.

“It’s just been so cool to see what people are doing to continue to honor Justin, raise awareness for our missions and support the foundation,” she said. “It’s allowed us to get the fuel we need to keep it going, and we’re doing so much more than we thought we could do. And it’s sort of imploded with ways we can honor all the missions that are important to us and keep the story alive.”

One of the most significant additions in recent years has been expanded access to genetic testing. At the 2025 AmazinGrace fundraiser – a community event held each summer – the foundation partnered with JScreen to offer screening for genetic mutations linked to increased cancer risk or reproductive health concerns, including CDH1, the mutation associated with Justin Hardy’s cancer.

As a result of those screenings, four individuals discovered a mutation that required clinical follow-up.

“Because of the testing and screening event that we did for individuals, we were able to identify that they had something in their DNA that was considered a genetic mutation that put them at higher risk for cancers,” Jackie Hardy said. “Now they are able to clinically follow up with that and monitor it so that they’re not in a position like Justin where it was too late.”

The screenings also had a personal impact on the Hardy family. Shortly after Justin’s death, the family underwent testing, and Karen Hardy learned she carried the same mutation as her son. After electing to have her stomach removed as a preventive measure, doctors discovered that the same cancer had already formed, though it had not spread elsewhere in her body.

“I always say that Justin and genetic testing have saved my life,” Karen Hardy said. “It’s why genetic testing is important to us. Because you don’t know what you don’t know, and I didn’t know I had a gene mutation until Justin was diagnosed, and so that was the beginning of learning about your hereditary risk for cancers.”

Justin Hardy’s legacy continues to be honored at his alma mater in several meaningful ways. Each season, the St. Charles East basketball team awards his No. 32 jersey to the player who best exemplifies hard work and selfless, team-first leadership. In addition, the school’s leadership studies course directs all proceeds from its annual service projects to the foundation established in his name.

Clint Hull, the mayor of St. Charles and secretary of the HardyStrong Foundation, has witnessed the organization’s growth firsthand. A lifelong resident of St. Charles, he said one of the most meaningful parts has been seeing events like HardyStrong Night during basketball season, which bring together St. Charles East and St. Charles North to celebrate and honor Justin Hardy’s legacy.

“It’s as big a night for St. Charles North as it is for St. Charles East, where they compete hard, because that’s what Justin would want,” Hull said. “It’s not celebrating a certain player from a certain school, but a St. Charles basketball player. And as mayor, those are the events that give me goosebumps and make me so proud of the community, because they come together for the common goal of honoring Justin.”

The foundation hopes to continue making genetic testing more accessible to the public, while also sharing Justin Hardy’s story and legacy for years to come.

“Justin’s story or legacy has really stayed alive not because of the foundation, but because of how the community has rallied around it,” Karen Hardy said. “We’re definitely expanding the reach of people who now know Justin’s story and continue to share the story, which is so important to us. Because not only is it great to keep Justin’s memory and story alive, but also to fulfill our missions and to honor him, and I’m touched and honored by how the communities, especially in St. Charles, have supported our family and Justin’s story.”