"Finding Resilience: Thirteen Survivors’ Paths to Inner Peace
Statistics tell us that one in eight women, and one in eight hundred men, from all walks of life will develop breast cancer in their lifetime. Beyond the numbers however, each of these individuals will have a unique treatment and recovery experience. Each will be impacted differently. They will all forge their own paths and have their own stories to tell. I did not have a true appreciation of this until I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016.
About a year after my initial breast cancer diagnosis, I was leaving one of my appointments with my oncologist, Dr. Richard Zelkowitz. I couldn’t help but notice the vast number of people in the waiting area. They all looked so solemn. As I looked into the eyes of those individuals, I was moved to appreciate how fortunate I was and wondered whether these patients and their caregivers had amazing support like I had.
Throughout my medical experience with cancer, I had such an incredible support system whether it was a medical team I had complete trust in, friends and family who helped at each step of of the diagnosis and recovery, support groups, nutritional advice, acupuncture, and exercise programs, just to name a few. On that day, I was inspired to do what I could to try to ensure that other patients had the opportunity to feel supported, as well.
So many of the people that I have met have incredible stories of how they were able to stay positive through their own cancer treatment and recovery. The programs, the people that I have met through them, and sense of community we developed have helped me get through my cancer diagnosis and treatment both physically and mentally. For me and many others, including those with other types of cancers also represented in this exhibit, the support received has been life-saving.
As a professional photographer of over 36 years, my goal for this exhibit is to share some of these individual’s amazing stories. I want to highlight the beauty, positive energy and determination that can come through survivorship. All of us in this community want to help other breast cancer patients find their own inner strength, as well as help raise funds for an organization my oncologist, Dr. Zelkowitz, brought to my attention, Pink Aid.
After discussions with each of the 13 participants you see in this exhibit, we were able to come up with a creative and respectful way to capture their stories so that we could share them with a wider audience. With help from photo assistants, hair stylists, makeup artists, 13 trusting and willing participants, and a strong support system telling me we could do this, we are so proud to present this exhibit. I hope you enjoy viewing it and are moved to make a donation to the Pink Aid organization so they can continue to serve their breast cancer patients in such an extraordinary way.
PINK AID’S MISSION
From Pink Aid:
Pink Aid’s mission is to help underserved breast cancer patients survive treatment with support and dignity, to provide screening to those in financial need, and to empower breast cancer survivors to heal by helping and inspiring others.
Pink Aid is the only national organization providing Compassionate Support and Rapid Emergency Financial Assistance to patients in treatment, supporting families during this critical time. Funds provide emergency assistance for non-medical, household expenses including rent, utilities, food & transportation with a prompt response time. At present we have helped more than 30,000 patients in 47 states.
Our local grants programs in CT and Long Island help provide services including free breast cancer screening and help covering non-medical expenses such as food cards, household bills, wigs, recovery garments and transportation for patients undergoing treatment.
Some of the programs we support are established hospital foundations and national non-profits, while others are smaller grass roots organizations. Large or small, they share our goal to help local women survive breast cancer with compassion.
Pink Aid is a 501C3 and awards grants to recipients whose goals best advance Pink Aid’s Mission
To learn how you can help our mission, please go to https://pinkaid.org and click on the “DONATE” tab at the top, right of the page and look for the “DONATE NOW' tab further down on the page.
Thank you for your interest and generosity.
Pam Rouleau, Photographer