Program Helps Navigate Cancer Community Benefit
Event Raises $55,000 The annual Cast Off Against Cancer event, held each spring, raised $55,484 in 2017, and nearly half that total – $27,467 – was raised by Floyd teams. The event is the culmination of a months-long effort during which community teams organize individual fundraisers, such as T-shirt sales, raffles and food sales to benefit Cancer Navigators. The Cast Off Against Cancer event includes a walk to the Chief John Ross Memorial footbridge for the Daisy Drop. During this annual ceremony, individuals drop white daisies into the Oostanaula River in honor or remembrance of a cancer warrior. Wreath Auction a Holiday Tradition Each fall, Cancer Navigators hosts a holiday wreath auction. The 2017 auction raised more than $6,000. Area florists, garden clubs, businesses, cancer survivors and individuals created more than 60 one-of-a-kind wreaths that were displayed at the Harbin Clinic Tony E. Warren M.D. Cancer Center for the silent auction. Much of the success of the auction was the result of long-time Cancer Navigators supporter Buddy Bagley. Bagley purchased 25 wreaths, totaling nearly $2,000 in honor of his wife, Darlene, a Cancer Navigators patient who passed away after a battle with breast and ovarian cancer. Bagley used some of his purchased wreaths to decorate his home. He gave others to friends and family members in the Adairsville community where he lives.
A cancer diagnosis can trigger a wide range of emotions that challenge patients and their families, and when that happens, the resources of Cancer Navigators are available to anyone who needs them. Through education, counseling and access to resources, Cancer Navigators helps ease some of the difficult emotions newly diagnosed patients and their families experience and helps them to gain a sense of control. Founded in 2006 and opened in 2008, the community-based, non-profit organization was born from a strategic planning retreat attended by cancer providers and cancer survivors who were asked to consider this question: How can we best serve cancer patients in our community? The result is Cancer Navigators, a hub for cancer- related services and education that connects cancer patients and their families to resources and information. In 2017, Cancer Navigators provided the following services to 1,763 patients, 468 of whom were newly diagnosed cancer patients: • Cancer education • Caregiver workshops • Complementary therapies • Counseling • Durable goods resources • Financial assistance resources • Insurance issues resources • Integrative medicine • Mental and emotional health • Nutrition resources • Prevention of recurring cancer • Renewal retreats • Retreats • Support groups Cancer Navigators is also a link for patients to hospital or clinic-based nurse navigators and experienced oncology registered nurses, who provide patients and their families with information about their diagnosis and treatment options, and guide patients through all aspects of treatment and recovery. All navigation services are provided at no cost to the patient. • Symptom management • Transportation resources
To fund these services, Cancer Navigators depends on the generosity of donors and local fundraisers.
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