My ACS Story
Last Monday morning, I was getting ready to leave Maui, after doing a 1/2 marathon there w/my college friend Vi Duong, and received a call from Cecily, a program director at our local American Cancer Society office. She asked if I could tell my ACS story for a thank you dinner on Tuesday, the 25th, for volunteers and team captains of the 2007 Relay for Life in E. Hawaii. I was interested & told her I'd love to do it. The next day, I dropped by the ACS office right after getting a massage from my friend Jennifer Ho (as a treat for finishing & to rub out final aches). I borrowed a DVD which had highlights of stories from a handful of survivors of various types of cancer, to get some ideas on what to say.
I wasn't quite sure what to really say to try & inspire these volunteers. Luckily, during my long weekend on Maui, I started & finally finished a book that a friend of mine, Jennie Woo, a public health nurse w/the San Francisco Dept. of Public Health, had given me. It was "How to Live Between Office Visits" by Dr. Bernie Siegel. She said he inspired her to conduct cancer support groups & to learn how to do art therapy. I used a line from the book in my thank you speech, "Don't be afraid of the future." It came down to the wire writing out my speech! The dinner was held at the Univ. of Hawaii's cafeteria & it had a 1950s rock-n-roll theme to it to make it festive. I was nervous prior to my speech, not knowing anyone else, except for the staff. I sat at the table closest to the stage along with several staff, the emcees & another volunteer. Cathy Hashimoto, the director, introduced me, saying I wasn't a typical cancer survivor, that I was "young, beautiful, & has a young child" or something like that! But she did add "not that other survivors aren't beautiful too." I started out saying I was honored to be asked to speak since the 2007 Relay for Life was my 1st to walk the survivors' lap. I mentioned that the same year I made my 1st Relay donation in 2005, in honor of my friend Sharon's mom (who died of breast cancer) and also for 2 uncles who died of cancer, that I would be diagnosed with breast cancer & soon be a client of the ACS. After telling them about how I got my diagnosis & briefly about my treatment, I highlighted how the ACS helped me with a volunteer from the Reach to Recovery program, who gave me practical advice based on her own experience, & got me involved with the "Spirited Survivors" support group, that Cecily helped me select a wig in preparation for my chemo, and that they even paid for airfare for me to go to Honolulu to get a prosthesis fitting from a nurse specialist. I ended by saying how that survivors' lap lifted my spirits, that all their efforts gave me hope, to not be afraid of the future, that as a survivor, I can cope, thrive & beat cancer!
Well, tomorrow I have another check-up w/Dr. Levey, my oncologist at Kaiser. I'd like to ask him more details about getting pregnant again -- make sure it won't trigger a new cancer or recurrence....
I wasn't quite sure what to really say to try & inspire these volunteers. Luckily, during my long weekend on Maui, I started & finally finished a book that a friend of mine, Jennie Woo, a public health nurse w/the San Francisco Dept. of Public Health, had given me. It was "How to Live Between Office Visits" by Dr. Bernie Siegel. She said he inspired her to conduct cancer support groups & to learn how to do art therapy. I used a line from the book in my thank you speech, "Don't be afraid of the future." It came down to the wire writing out my speech! The dinner was held at the Univ. of Hawaii's cafeteria & it had a 1950s rock-n-roll theme to it to make it festive. I was nervous prior to my speech, not knowing anyone else, except for the staff. I sat at the table closest to the stage along with several staff, the emcees & another volunteer. Cathy Hashimoto, the director, introduced me, saying I wasn't a typical cancer survivor, that I was "young, beautiful, & has a young child" or something like that! But she did add "not that other survivors aren't beautiful too." I started out saying I was honored to be asked to speak since the 2007 Relay for Life was my 1st to walk the survivors' lap. I mentioned that the same year I made my 1st Relay donation in 2005, in honor of my friend Sharon's mom (who died of breast cancer) and also for 2 uncles who died of cancer, that I would be diagnosed with breast cancer & soon be a client of the ACS. After telling them about how I got my diagnosis & briefly about my treatment, I highlighted how the ACS helped me with a volunteer from the Reach to Recovery program, who gave me practical advice based on her own experience, & got me involved with the "Spirited Survivors" support group, that Cecily helped me select a wig in preparation for my chemo, and that they even paid for airfare for me to go to Honolulu to get a prosthesis fitting from a nurse specialist. I ended by saying how that survivors' lap lifted my spirits, that all their efforts gave me hope, to not be afraid of the future, that as a survivor, I can cope, thrive & beat cancer!
Well, tomorrow I have another check-up w/Dr. Levey, my oncologist at Kaiser. I'd like to ask him more details about getting pregnant again -- make sure it won't trigger a new cancer or recurrence....
posted by goforsushi @ 9:33 PM
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