Giving Back by Giving Hope

Ed. Note: Champions of Change is a weekly initiative to highlight Americans who are making an impact in their communities and helping our country rise to meet the many challenges of the 21st century.

I am a 3 time cancer survivor, 2 times with breast and 1 with colorectal. My breast cancer of 29 years ago resulted in several surgeries and double mastectomies. My diagnosis has led me to volunteer work that has greatly impacted my life. I am a mother of 4 and grandmother of 12. My experience has led me to become a breast cancer advocate to help others with their battle.

I volunteer with the American Cancer Society and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network because it is my way of giving back. I feel very blessed with my recoveries and want to be able to give back and help others look beyond their fear of cancer and pull out their courage to fight the battle and win it. I feel that it is extremely important to promote our message of prevention and early detection. I like to offer others hope, so they can go forward on their cancer journey with trust, confidence and belief in themselves.

Last year, I had my second diagnosis of breast cancer. I did not have insurance at this time and was able to qualitfy for the Breast and Cervical Cancer Program, funded by CDC. Thanks to ACS CAN, I was able to utilize my information through them and escape financial devastation. I am able to help others with this knowledge and help advocate for the continued funding for this program.

Improving Educational Excellence for Hispanics

Today, the White House Initiative for Educational Excellence for Hispanics will host its second commission meeting here at the White House. The Commission is tasked with expanding academic excellence and improving educational opportunities for Hispanics by providing advice to President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan. Hispanics are already the largest minority group in the public education system with more than 1 in 5 students in the nation’s elementary, middle and high schools, but have the lowest education attainment level overall, according to a report by the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics.

Dr. Jill Biden, a lifelong educator and wife of Vice President Joe Biden, will join the meeting today to give brief remarks on the importance of Hispanic success in education to America’s economy.  In addition, world famous singer, songwriter and record producer Shakira will join the meeting as a newly appointed commissioner.  Shakira has worked on a number of efforts to expand and improve comprehensive early childhood care and education around the world.  She joins a stellar group of other education and civic leaders who are Members of the Commission for the White House Initiative for Educational Excellence for Hispanics. 

Shifting Our Focus to Make Truly Meaningful Progress to End Breast Cancer

Ed. Note: Champions of Change is a weekly initiative to highlight Americans who are making an impact in their communities and helping our country rise to meet the many challenges of the 21st century.

I am a 14 year survivor of inflammatory breast cancer, and have a strong family history of the disease, both my mother and grandmother died of breast cancer.  On Tuesday, 9/27 I was honored to participate in a Champions of Change discussion with others who care deeply about breast cancer.   We want, for ourselves and for others, quality lives that are long and well-lived, not cut short by breast cancer, or absorbed by a lifetime of worry and side effects.  Whether it is through primary prevention, prevention of metastasis, or beneficial treatments that extend quality life while living with metastasis, we don’t want our lives ended early because of breast cancer and we want to make a real difference for the next generation.   

As members of the National Breast Cancer Coalition, we are committed to ending breast cancer and through Breast Cancer Deadline 2020, to change the conversation about breast cancer.   We need a paradigm shift in the breast cancer world – in government, the media, research, and advocacy - to focus on those areas that are truly meaningful to the goal of ending breast cancer, to primary prevention and to the causes and prevention of metastasis.

Even with the efforts of very committed activists, clinicians, and researchers, and mammoth financial and personal investment in almost every facet of breast cancer, progress against meaningful measures is painfully slow and even questionable in some areas.