Many of our stories feature survivors who discover a desire to build a lasting project. These founders often expand on their experiences to fill a need other people overlook; their projects develop through a unique lens, providing essential programming, services, and assistance through organizations that grow beyond their wildest dreams.
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Marcia Donziger chose to help others by launching a service to help cancer patients stay connected. Listen to her story now.
Marcia Donziger lost her friend Lori to brain cancer. A cancer survivor herself, Donziger found inspiration in her friend’s cancer website and founded mylifeline.org to help other cancer patients connect with friends and family.
Erik was a successful entrepreneur with a young family when he was diagnosed with leukemia. His battle against the disease, and the friends he made along the way, inspired him to found The There Goes My Hero Foundation. His organization’s mission: to restore hope to Leukemia patients and their families through increasing bone marrow registrants, providing nutritious meals, and supporting blood cancer research.
Krist Schmitt Burr has Basal Cell Carcinoma Nevus Syndrome (BCCNS), a rare genetic disorder that affects the way the body grows and may lead to various forms of cancer, especially basal cell carcinoma, a form of skin cancer. After having two affected children, Kristi founded the Basal Cell Carcinoma Nevus Syndrome Life Support Network, the only organization in North America dedicated to supporting families with BCCNS.
Erika Hanson Brown was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2002. Now she’s the mayor (and founder) of Colontown, a non-profit organization that serves as a social network for people fighting colon cancer. Or, as Erika calls it, “the face and the place for colorectal cancer survivorship”.
Elissa was only 23 when she was first treated for breast cancer. After going two more rounds with the disease, she understood the journey and wanted to guide others who were travelling the same path. Now, she works with other breast cancer survivors, helping them to navigate the rough spots.
Rochelle Shoretz was first diagnosed with breast cancer at age 28, and then with stage IV breast cancer at age 37. She is the founder and executive director of Sharsheret, a national non-profit organization that provides support and resources to young Jewish women and their families facing breast cancer. Despite the sadness her experience with cancer may have brought her loved ones, Shoretz says cancer gave her an opportunity to do what she loves.
Edel Blumberg was diagnosed with colon cancer at age 47. Despite undergoing surgery and chemotherapy, the disease returned three years later. After another course of treatment, Edel founded the Semi-Colon Club, an organization dedicated to spreading awareness about colon cancer prevention, screening and treatment. Or, as Edel likes to say, colon cancer is preventable, treatable and beatable.
Have you been working towards seizing the day since you or a loved one has been diagnosed with cancer? Contribute your story by submitting through our patient story form.
Stories are often bound by a common theme. Keep reading about how people learned to Seize the Days by category.
