What started out as a simple act of neighbor helping neighbor has had a ripple effect to spread kindness – and donations of money and care boxes – to cancer patients.
Pink With A Passion is the grassroots brainchild of Amena Wilson, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018. When she reached out to her neighbor Carlotta Woodard to help with an event, Woodard went from kindly neighbor to hard-working volunteer for Pink With A Passion.
Woodard officially becomes a cancer survivor on Sunday, when she celebrates her 10-year anniversary of being cancer-free.
The group serves the four-county area and recently donated $2,000 to Maria Parham Health’s Cancer Center in observance of breast cancer awareness month. The money is available for any particular needs a patient may have, whether it’s transportation, helping make a copay or other medical costs. The women spoke with John C. Rose on Tuesday’s Town Talk.
In addition to the cash donations, they take care boxes to be distributed to patients, either at the hospital’s cancer center or to other individuals they may know about who are dealing with cancer.
The COVID-19 pandemic has hindered somewhat their ability to get out in the community to raise awareness and money. Not to be deterred, a raffle fundraiser that ran from March 1 to May 1 netted close to $13,000.
Raising money and redistributing it to people in need is what Pink With A Passion is all about.
The pink, of course, is the color associated worldwide with breast cancer, Wilson said. The “passion” part of their name is a nod to what fuels the group’s desire to help.
“We find people we know who are dealing with cancer,” Wilson said. “We reach out and give to them – whatever we can do to help. We give to others.”
Wilson said the idea for the group was born from her own efforts to help defray the expenses associated with her own diagnosis. She organized a fish plate fundraiser and said it was so successful she decided to keep it going.
“I was so overwhelmed,” she said of the support she got from the community. “There was so much love, passion and support show, I decided to do it for other people.”
And the simple act of asking a neighbor to join her effort has paid dividends. Woodard said she was eager to be a part of a support system for others through Pink With A Passion, mainly because of its vision for helping others.
Woodard knew all too well the importance of having a support system; she said she was blessed to have a strong support system as she faced her diagnosis head on. An annual mammogram detected her Stage 1 cancer and because it was caught early, a mastectomy and a chemo pill therapy was her treatment.
“I didn’t have a lump,” Woodard said, who added she has a family history of breast cancer. “If it weren’t for a mammogram, I wouldn’t even know I had cancer.”
She said she is sporting pink hair for the month of October, in said she is so excited to celebrate her 10-year anniversary of being cancer-free.
Wilson said she thanks God for allowing her to find a lump in her breast – it was detected at an early stage as well. Early detection is THE key for beating breast cancer, both women said. But going through treatments with a positive mindset, as little stress as possible, exercise and a healthy diet all contribute to a patient’s restored health.
In addition to caring for your physical well-being while undergoing treatment, Wilson said it is critical to have someone accompany you to doctor’s appointments. Taking notes and having a second set of ears to hear what a physician is discussing about your case is so important. “Knowledge is so important when you’re going through cancer,” Wilson said.
To learn more, find the group on Facebook, contact the organization via email at Pinkwithapassion_7@yahoo.com or Wilson at 252. 213. 5735.
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