Shana Greening and Stephanie Ross received encouragement while being treated for cancer, and now they are inviting other young cancer survivors to join a support group they are helping to organize.
It is not limited to local patients, although it is affiliated with the James E. Cary Cancer Center in Hannibal. “We want this to be a regional group for networking and support for these young adults,” ages 18 to 45, Greening said. “We are opening it up and will be learning what the public has a need for.”
Meetings are scheduled from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of each month at Fiddlestiks. The next meeting will be at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 24, at Fiddlestiks.
“It’s a very informal setting,” Greening said. It is for socializing, “getting away from the cancer is the purpose.”
The group has not been named, and a naming contest is under way. Names, phrases and artwork for the young survivors group may be submitted until Friday, Nov. 20. A prize will be awarded to the winning submission. Entries may be e-mailed to survivor@hrhonline.org or mailed to YCSG, in care of James E. Cary Cancer Center, 5985 Hospital Drive, Hannibal, MO 63401.
B.J. Berhorst, a social worker at Cary Cancer Center, explained that Ross and Greening are the facilitators of the new support group, along with himself. For more information contact Berhorst at (573) 406-5812.
This group is for young people, Greening said, because they share similar circumstances. “We are still young and in the work force,” she said. “I have three children, and we have to worry about whether our children’s needs are being met.”
Greening, who has been treated for stage 4 mastastic breast cancer, was diagnosed in July 2008. Her treatment will be ongoing, although her cancer is in remission. She is a therapist at Chaddock School in Quincy, Ill.
“I do hope that this group will provide young cancer survivors with the support and encouragement we so deserve,” Greening said. “My experience with cancer has been a positive one, in that I have learned more about being supported and loved since being diagnosed than I can put into words.
“I have been lucky in that my husband (Derek), children (Kaleb, Katie and Kegan), family, friends, church, co-workers and community have encouraged me to fight, even when I wasn’t sure I had any fight left in me,” Greening said. “Cancer can be a lonely experience, and this group is here to let every cancer fighter and survivor know they are not alone.”
Ross, a guidance counselor at Hannibal High School, was treated for colon cancer. She was first diagnosed in February 2008. She has a family history of colon cancer but was shocked to learn she had it at age 31. She credits Dr. Michael Bukstein for her successful surgery.
Ross also is glad she had her six months of chemotherapy at the Cary Cancer Center, where she said Dr. Bari and the staff treated her like she was their only patient.
“Life beyond cancer is wonderful,” Ross said in an article in the current edition of cancer center’s publication, “The Survivor.” “No longer do I fear cancer, but I embrace each day as a blessing from God. I no longer take my time with my 3-year-old son, Ryan, and my husband, Jason, for granted. I am thankful for lessons I have learned during this difficult time of my life. I have learned that cancer is a ‘season’ in your life, not the rest of your life.”
Ross was eager to help the young survivors group get started, adding “sharing our stories and supporting each other are invaluable experiences.”
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Shana Greening and Stephanie Ross received encouragement while being treated for cancer, and now they are inviting other young cancer survivors to join a support group they are helping to organize.
It is not limited to local patients, although it is affiliated with the James E. Cary Cancer Center in Hannibal. “We want this to be a regional group for networking and support for these young adults,” ages 18 to 45, Greening said. “We are opening it up and will be learning what the public has a need for.”
Meetings are scheduled from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of each month at Fiddlestiks. The next meeting will be at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 24, at Fiddlestiks.
“It’s a very informal setting,” Greening said. It is for socializing, “getting away from the cancer is the purpose.”
The group has not been named, and a naming contest is under way. Names, phrases and artwork for the young survivors group may be submitted until Friday, Nov. 20. A prize will be awarded to the winning submission. Entries may be e-mailed to survivor@hrhonline.org or mailed to YCSG, in care of James E. Cary Cancer Center, 5985 Hospital Drive, Hannibal, MO 63401.
B.J. Berhorst, a social worker at Cary Cancer Center, explained that Ross and Greening are the facilitators of the new support group, along with himself. For more information contact Berhorst at (573) 406-5812.
This group is for young people, Greening said, because they share similar circumstances. “We are still young and in the work force,” she said. “I have three children, and we have to worry about whether our children’s needs are being met.”
Greening, who has been treated for stage 4 mastastic breast cancer, was diagnosed in July 2008. Her treatment will be ongoing, although her cancer is in remission. She is a therapist at Chaddock School in Quincy, Ill.
“I do hope that this group will provide young cancer survivors with the support and encouragement we so deserve,” Greening said. “My experience with cancer has been a positive one, in that I have learned more about being supported and loved since being diagnosed than I can put into words.
“I have been lucky in that my husband (Derek), children (Kaleb, Katie and Kegan), family, friends, church, co-workers and community have encouraged me to fight, even when I wasn’t sure I had any fight left in me,” Greening said. “Cancer can be a lonely experience, and this group is here to let every cancer fighter and survivor know they are not alone.”
Ross, a guidance counselor at Hannibal High School, was treated for colon cancer. She was first diagnosed in February 2008. She has a family history of colon cancer but was shocked to learn she had it at age 31. She credits Dr. Michael Bukstein for her successful surgery.
Ross also is glad she had her six months of chemotherapy at the Cary Cancer Center, where she said Dr. Bari and the staff treated her like she was their only patient.
“Life beyond cancer is wonderful,” Ross said in an article in the current edition of cancer center’s publication, “The Survivor.” “No longer do I fear cancer, but I embrace each day as a blessing from God. I no longer take my time with my 3-year-old son, Ryan, and my husband, Jason, for granted. I am thankful for lessons I have learned during this difficult time of my life. I have learned that cancer is a ‘season’ in your life, not the rest of your life.”
Ross was eager to help the young survivors group get started, adding “sharing our stories and supporting each other are invaluable experiences.”
