WOMEN AS MENTORS
Mentor: A Wise and Faithful Counselor
WOMEN AS MENTORS
Mentor: A Wise and Faithful Counselor
Excerpts from my eBook: Women As Mentors Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder: Image Disorder by Joann Vallo
This is a self mentoring program I developed several years ago, using photos of yourself throughout different stages of your life. I thought I would share it here with anybody who needs it. It's a good program and it works!
Yes it is, and when the beholder is looking at oneself, sometimes that’s hard to remember. After all, what you see is real and right there in front of you, right? Yes and no. If you have been convinced through teasing, comments from concerned loved ones or friends, endless weight loss advertisements, etc., that you need to lose a few pounds; have a make over; change your look, and on and on; chances are that image you see in front of you is an acquired one in your eyes.
“Beauty is Skin Deep” Here is where the problem lies. Most of us have created our self-image on the surface self. I watch people stand in front of mirrors, twisting and turning, trying to look the way ‘the beautiful people’ they see in magazines and on television, look. Consequently, they have a ‘look’ in mind, and if they don’t see that ‘look’ reflected in the mirror, a couple of things can happen. Some will simply shrug, take another look, find something they like about their image, and get on with life. Others, sadly, will decide they simply don’t qualify as one of ‘the beautiful people’ and will become depressed, some severely.
We are becoming a nation with increasingly distorted self-image values. We aren’t only the physical self we see reflected in the mirror, and amazingly, once a person becomes more aware of their inner self and learns to love that self unconditionally, that mirror image actually changes. The focus becomes who, not what, we are seeing reflected. As an example, think of when you are having an exceptionally good day; lots of good energy coming your way. Your hair may not be perfect that day and you may be over or under weight, but what you see when the good energy is flowing through you, is a vibrant, happy person. Conversely, think of when you are having an exceptionally hard day; lots of bad energy coming your way. No matter how much time you spend trying to look good, all you will see reflected is a sad or angry person.
I can’t remember how many times my daughters came home in tears because “all the kids hated them and they were ugly and fat and stupid.” The next day ‘all the kids loved them and they were pretty and smart and perfect’. Both days were very real reflections of what they perceived themselves to be, based on what others perceived them to be. Somehow, we all make it through those days, good and bad, to adulthood, and this is when we can take control and develop a self image based on unconditional love. Then we can share this with our children and help them develop a loving self-image. The teasing and bad days won’t go away, but if they are loved unconditionally at home, the teasing won’t be so damaging.
Meditation has been my tool for handling bad energy. I simply go to a good space and stay there for a while. It’s one thing to pray, it’s quite another to stop and listen for the answers to our prayers. When I meditate I listen, and hear some amazing things. If you are suffering from Image Disorder, the first step is recognizing it. Then you can begin focusing on the real you, reflected from the mirror. If you truly don’t like who you are seeing, give some thought to why. Is that image one you have carried from childhood? If so, I have a suggestion to make.
Go through photo albums and collect photos representing your evolution; childhood to present. Select photos which represent each stage of that evolution and make copies of them. I started with a photo of myself when I was two years old and went on from there. Look at each photo, allowing yourself to recall ‘who you were’ at that time.
Now for the fun part. Mentor yourself. That’s right, share what you have learned with…yourself! We hear much about our inner child, and that is who you will be mentoring. Spend some time with each of your photos, recalling your fears as well as your happiness. Both are valid. You will benefit from recalling the happier times, and you can lay to rest some of those fears and disappointments from unhappy memories. The little girl in the school photo who was devastated by comments from other kids, is now an adult, aware of how mean kids can be to each other, and can gently explain to that child that more than likely, she is the only one harboring that particular memory and letting it affect her as an adult.
Teen years are especially important. Those years we dreamed of being a movie star, or a rock star, or a scientist, or a clothes designer. The list is endless. Let those photos remind you of those dreams, and recapture some of that magic.
The most important part of this mentoring program, is to allow yourself enough time to deeply feel what those photos bring up for you; getting to know yourself all over again, so to speak. Paste them into a notebook, so you can write down your feelings as you go along. You are the sum total of all that those photos represent. Sharing what you have learned about life, with yourself can be extremely liberating and most important, healing.
You were gifted with life and love, and it’s time to learn to love that person unconditionally. You can do it, trust me. If you need some guidance, there are lots of people out there who can help. You are not alone with your Image Disorder. Just reach out to someone.
joannvallo@comcast.net
________________________________________________________________________
VOLUNTEER LITERACY PROGRAMS
Did you know that: In 2005-06, from the 101 California adult literacy programs in the California Library Literacy Services (CLLS) program; Over 100,000 low-literacy adults and children were reached? 18,908 adults received instructions. More than 785,230 volunteer hours were generated. 556,681 instructional hours were donated by 11,008 volunteers. The difference that CLLS programs make in the lives of the adults they serve: 81% of those who set the goal learned the alphabet. 66% of those who set the goal were able to share a book with their child for the first time. 53% of those who set the goal were able to read a newspaper for the first time.
A functionally illiterate adult is unable to read, write, and communicate in any language, compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job and in society. Literacy levels also impact people’s overall health, their self-esteem, and most aspects of their lives. Persons with low literacy often do not (or are not able) to provide their children with the early experiences that are foundational to success in school. And so the cycle continues. It’s a huge problem, and it’s growing. As a community, we need to build awareness and find ways to help. You can make a difference in your community, your neighborhoods, etc. Get involved locally!The Benefits of a Literate Community:
• Empower adult learners to fully participate in society by reading to their children, voting, passing GED examinations, filling out job applications, and getting driver’s licenses.
• Improve adult learner’s ability to function more effectively in day-to-day tasks such as reading labels on medicine bottles, election ballots, a jury pool summons, traffic signs.
• Equitable access to basic and continuing education for all adults.
• Women who participate in literacy programs have better knowledge of health and family planning, and are more likely to adopt preventive health measures.
Check with your local libraries for volunteer opportunities with the literacy program.
___________________________________________________
From Immigrant To Honors Winner by Leopoldine Matialeu
It all happens so fast! Leopoldine Matialeu is among the top ten students who are about to get their associate degree from Canada College. She is interviewed by a committee in charge of selecting the best candidate amongst them. The next morning, the president of the College comes in her class and announces that she has been selected as the valedictorian of class 2008 and will deliver a speech during graduation.
Wow! Tell me this is not a dream because if it is, PLEASE, don’t wake me up. In order to share with you the intensity of joy and proud that filled me at that moment, I have to take you aboard the life machine.
Destination: my life’s story.
I am from Cameroon, Africa, originally. My first language is French and my native language is Fefe. Cameroon has a high level of poverty and my family didn’t escape from that. My parents separated when I was about two and a half years old, thus I grew up with my father, who is a pastor, my stepmother and my four siblings. My father, who highly values education, decided to continue with his PhD in theology. Unfortunately, his boss didn’t approve of that decision and my dad was asked to choose between keeping his job and going to school. He decided to go to school. This is where the misery began. Jobless and with a family to take care of, my father relied on loans from friends to put us through school. More than once, we almost got thrown out of the small two bedrooms apartment because my father couldn’t pay rent on time; and I almost got kicked out of school because he couldn’t pay my school fees on time. The following year, my dad got his job back, but was sent to a remote area of the country where he couldn’t get a regular salary; he decided to go alone. In order to make both ends meet and under the hottest sun, my big sister and I (I was thirteen at the time) carried big trays of peanuts on our heads and walked to more populated areas to sell them. The money obtained from that sell was used to buy food to feed the family.
The next year, my father was sent to another remote area, but decided to take us with him, thus we moved to Bandja. There, life’s basic necessities like water, food, and transportation were scarce. During the rainy season, we collected water from the rain and farmed for corn, beans, potatoes, cassava, and yams. During the dry season, we got water from wells (that we carried on our heads) and I walked close to a kilometer to get “drinking” water, which was in a deep valley with a steep slope. Because it was very hard for my stepmother to find a job, she had to go to a suburban area. Thus, she left me behind with my eleven years old brother (I was sixteen at that time) to take care of. A typical day for me was to walk to school in the morning, which was more than a kilometer from my house. At my school, there was no library, no computers, no grants or scholarships, and teachers struck regularly. After school, I stopped by the local market, which only opened once every two weeks, to buy food. Then, I carried the bag of food on my head and my backpack on my back and climbed hills to get home. Then, I cooked a meal for the family using wood because we didn’t have a stove. Sometimes, the wood wasn’t dry enough. This made the cooking process very difficult because it would get very smoky and the smoke made my eyes very swollen. At the end of cooking, my eyes looked like I had cried restlessly for a year. Then, I had to study. My last year of high school, my dad couldn’t afford to pay for electricity. On top of what I just listed above, I had to study with a kerosene lamp in order to prepare for my high school diploma, which I passed with honor.
After these experiences, the idea of moving to the U.S. wasn’t even part of my wildest dream. My mom is a very caring person and she also highly values education. She went through a lot of struggles throughout her life, but always managed to stay strong no matter the situation. She moved to the U.S. in order to continue her education, and also to prepare a better future for her children, her grandchildren, and her family. Three years ago, my mom paid for me to move to U.S. She worked seven days a week and left my little sister, who is currently nine years old, with the babysitter in order to prepare for my arrival. February 2, 2005 I arrived at San Jose International Airport. Getting to know my mom and meeting my little sister for the first time was very exciting for me. Like all immigrants, my biggest challenge was English. A few weeks after being here, my mom asked me to write an essay, but I couldn’t even write five sentences. I had to work on my English skills, thus I stayed home for a year, and under my mom’s advices, I read books, listened to the radio, watched T.V., read and wrote essays on the computer. At that time, my best friend was the dictionary.
I started Canada College in spring 2006. Totally disoriented because of the change of culture and having to catch up in order to be on the same page with everybody wasn’t easy at first. I felt disadvantaged and unconfident about my English skills, but I quickly realized that the year spent studying English was highly beneficial as my English instructor congratulated me on my essay performances. This encouraged me to keep going forward. I was a full time student and a part-time worker. My mom had lost her job and couldn’t afford to pay rent. Therefore, for almost a year, we moved from motels to shelters and I saw my mom struggle and work constantly to find us a permanent home. Homelessness is a difficult situation to be in because it brings a great amount of stress, and living in a shelter made me realize that doors of opportunities can be either opened or shut right at your face.
We, finally, found a permanent roof in an apartment complex built for low- income families. Despite the emotional and physical stress I was going through, I studied relentlessly. These efforts were rewarding as I graduated with a 4.0 GPA and was on the dean’s list every semester. I was interviewed by San Francisco Chronicle, by local newspapers in the Bay area, by CBS radio, and by NBS for being selected as the valedictorian of class 2008. I was admitted into U.C. Davis and U.C. Berkeley. I was awarded the Regent scholarship, the highest scholarship that a university offers to a student and only four percent of transfer students are awarded, from both schools. I was also awarded a scholarship from Association of University Women, from Canada College Science and Technology department, and from CCCEOPS. I got into the Davis Honor Challenge program, where only five out of sixty applicants were selected. I will continue my education at U.C. Davis, where I will work toward a bachelor in biochemistry and a minor in a language. After that, I will apply to medical school and I dream of working with Doctors without Borders organization. I truly admire what they do throughout the world.
Thank you to my mom, Blandine Kamagou, and my little sister, Sabine Ball, who have supported me. I am at one end of the tunnel and see the light from the other end, but in order to get there, I have to climb hills, defeat giants, and go through other obstacles. When I look back at my life, I realize that I moved closer and closer to the light. It wasn’t easy, but I never gave up. Don’t forget where you come from, learn from your experience, stay optimistic, and believe in your dream. You can do it too!
lpoungue@yahoo.com
____________________________________________________
WHAT IS HYPNOSIS? by Gwenn Henkel CMH/MH
In the many years that I have been a hypnotherapist, it amazes me how many people are still in the dark ages about hypnosis and still have “fear” about it! I have to admit that if I had looked up the definition of hypnosis in Webster’s Dictionary, I probably would not be a Hypnotherapist now. Webster’s defines hypnosis as: “a sleep-like condition, psychically induced, by another person, in which the subject loses consciousness but responds, with certain limitations, to the suggestions of the hypnotist.” _____________________________________________________
WOW! That even scared ME when I read it! Let’s take a closer look at this definition.
First, “a sleep-like condition,” almost sounds like a disease of some kind. Something I certainly would want to avoid. Second, “psychically induced, usually by another person,” would mean I guess that this person would psyche you out? I know I would not want to go near someone like that! Third, “the subject loses consciousness but responds with certain limitations.” That is really a contradiction. How could someone be unconscious, and yet be able to respond? And, if they’re responding with “certain limitations,” just how effective could this process really be? I don’t believe that I would be interested in this type of experience at all.
I’m so surprised that even in this day and age, books that we trust and rely on are still filled with misinformation about hypnosis. You would think that we would have moved way beyond the things we see in the movies, like “THE CABINET OF DOCTOR CALIGARI,” where a doctor hypnotizes a man into becoming a zombie-like slave. Also, in the famous BELLA LUGOSE movies, Lugose simply fixates his redeyed gaze on a victim, who then becomes a slave to the commands of COUNT DRACULA. As amusing as these stories might seem today, the notion of hypnosis is still clouded by myth and misunderstanding.
Let me take some of the mystery out of hypnosis for you here and now. You see hypnosis is a very natural state of mind. You are in a state of hypnosis, or “trance -state” over 50- 80% of your day. (Some of that time is sleep time.) How many times have you been driving down the road and missed your exit because you were thinking about something else? Or perhaps you arrive at your destination and can’t even remember the last 20 minutes of your drive, or sitting in church and looking right at the minister, but not able to recall much of what the sermon was about when it was over. You were in the second phase of trance, Alpha, or self-hypnosis, and all hypnosis is self-hypnosis.
There are four phases of trance and you experience all of them every night when you go to sleep. Beta, Alpha, Theta and Delta are the phases and as I said, it is very natural to go in and out of these phases throughout your day. Delta however, is the deepest and you would only experience that when you are in deep sleep. Your subconscious mind holds the memory of everything that you have ever seen, heard or experienced since your birth and even in the womb itself. You even know what you ate for breakfast on January 2nd when you were 2 years old, what the weather was like that day, should you have happened to look out the window, and what your mother was wearing. Thank heavens you can’t actually recall all of it because that would mean you have way too much information going on in your head on a daily basis, when it’s sometimes hard enough to just remember where you left your keys!
As an infant or small child growing up, you learn all sorts of beliefs or “mis-beliefs” or “false truths” about life…yourself according to others, and these things set patterns in your subconscious mind that develop and grow with you. These patterns may be positive OR negative, and they will develop traits in you as an adult that may help or hinder your own growth in various aspects of your life. What messages did you possibly receive that told you that you can not lose weight, that made you afraid of the water, or that you will never be smart or amount to anything? What happened in your life that gave you the idea that you will always be poor, or that made you afraid to talk in public or to fear success? What causes your obsessive thoughts or behaviors? Why can’t you release your chronic pain that your doctors find no reason for? So many things that may keep you from fulfilling your highest potential in your life, or a healthy body, and you don’t know why, or even if you DO know, you haven’t been able to change anyway.
With the aid of a trained Hypnotherapist, you can re- write or reprogram the negative patterns or messages in the subconscious mind and change them to positive ones. This brings about harmony between the conscious and subconscious mind. This is done by gently guiding a person into a very relaxed state, using imagery to take the conscious mind on a “vacation” and allowing the subconscious mind to be easily obtainable so the work can be done there. When the mind and body are deeply relaxed, the mind is able to concentrate better. This is the principle reason for hypnosis.
Understand that what you see on a stage at the county fair with a hypnotist is not the same experience as a session with a hypnotherapist. Those people you see participating in those fun stage shows, go into that setting with a preconceived agreement with themselves that they are going to have a good time, that they will probably do some funny things just like they have seen others do before them. However, if the star of the show that Saturday night might have barked like a dog and sang and danced like Elvis, were to go and see a hypnotherapist soon after to stop smoking, that person would have made a much different contract with himself. Going to see a clinical hypnotherapist to stop smoking is not a laughing matter. If once in trance state, the hypnotherapist asked him to cluck like a chicken, he would instantly look at the therapist and ask what on earth was going on! That suggestion would not work in that clinical setting.
Hypnotherapy was acknowledged as “alternative medicine” in 1994. Many people are completely unaware of all the benefits of using hypnosis for health reasons. I have seen cancerous tumors go into remission and completely disappear. Chronic pain disorders, and surgeries done with hypnosis when a patient couldn’t have anesthesia. It is also used for natural childbirth without anesthesia; weight control; depression; fears and phobias and so much more!
The mind is very powerful, and learning how to utilize your subconscious to help with challenges in your life is so rewarding.
"Change Your Life by Changing Your Mind!"
www.entrancingllife.com
TIME TO GET OUT OF THE BOAT
I’m really astounded by the number of self-help books on the market today. While I’m a firm believer in taking good care of ourselves and using any means available to get us from point A to point B, there comes a time when we have to (to borrow a phrase I saw somewhere) get out of the boat. Otherwise we become stuck in the habit of trying to find another book or new self-discovery system. The same is true of diets.
Until we realize that it’s really life style changes we are looking for and once we find the one that works best for us and sticking with it, we can go on searching indefinitely and wondering in the meantime, why our lives are still not on track. During your next cleaning ritual, go through all those books and diet plans. Ask yourself which ones really resonate with your life style and make a vow to stick with one plan for at least 6 months.
Collecting books and diet plans can become a form of procrastination; always searching for something better without really making any changes. Donate the books you haven’t looked at since you bought them. There really is somebody out there who could benefit from that book that just wasn’t right for you. One place you might consider donating to is the Women’s County Jail. The women in these facilites have a lot of time on their hands and really don’t have a lot of reading material. My daughter Cari, the court reporter, suggested this to me not too long ago, after she talked with a young woman who was incarcerated. You could change somebody’s life simply by sharing your wonderful books, after you have decided which ones you will continue to use.
Joann Vallo
_____________________________________________________ This survivor has turned her battle against lung cancer into a global campaign to wipe out this number one cancer killer It has been another whirlwind autumn for Bonnie Addario. The San Carlos, California lung cancer survivor has circled the world running one of the largest lung cancer foundations, and rallying the field’s foremost researchers, clinicians, and business leaders from across the globe to help find a cure for this Number One cancer killer. At the same time, Bonnie spends her days reaching out to the recently diagnosed. Bonnie is passionate about helping them find the best treatment options, because she is determined that no one else will join the ranks of the 450 people who die each day of lung cancer in the United States. Nothing puts her vigilant mission into perspective like meeting the hundreds of people she has shared her experiences with who are battling this cancer. "The one thing I wasn’t prepared for was the ‘stigma’ that goes with lung cancer," says Bonnie, who adds that 60 percent of lung cancers now are diagnosed in people who’ve quit smoking decades ago or never smoked at all. "It continues to be viewed as a self- inflicted disease that only smokers get. I never could really understand why there wasn’t as much compassion for people with lung cancer as there was for people with other cancers. It still breaks my heart." But Bonnie, 60, is doing something about it. As a former president of a major oil company in San Francisco, Bonnie already was a seasoned barrier breaker. But the mother of three and grandmother’s life changed when she felt a shooting pain across her chest. Originally she was mis-diagnosed – twice. But, she took her own health into her hands. Accompanied by her husband Tony, she went in for a full-body scan and was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2004. That is when serendipity also stepped in. Reading a newspaper article in a San Mateo paper, she providentially stumbled on a leading team of lung cancer doctor’s and treatment options. Right in her backyard. Dr. David Jablons was one of the many doctors who performed Bonnie’s surgery at UCSF. Because Bonnie asked so many questions while she was under his care, Jablons asked her to become a member of his thoracic advisory board. "I was just outraged about the lung cancer statistics," recalls Bonnie. "Nineteen people die per hour and 1.3 million die every year. I couldn’t believe all these things were happening and that (lung cancer research) was underfunded, under-researched and diagnosed, more often than not, too late. Most people who have lung cancer are diagnosed at stage four, and they don’t live longer than three or four months." In the three years since she convinced Dr. Jablons to also join her team and co-found the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation, she has raised almost 4 million dollars to help eradicate lung cancer. Last year, the foundation brought in Michael Milken as keynote speaker at a two-day event in San Francisco. This summit brought together the leading lung cancer authorities in the world to answer the question: "If money were no object, what is the one thing you would do differently to change the landscape of lung cancer?" The answer was unanimous: Establish a centralized repository, collaboration and an institute. The Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute (ALCMI) (pronounced "alchemy.") was born. The Institute promotes scientific efforts to develop new, targeted treatments that hopefully someday soon, will lead to a cure for lung cancer. To this end, the institute is working to establish an international centralized database repository to accelerate the discovery, development and delivery of new and more effective diagnostic and treatment options for patients. "We are here because we find it unacceptable that lung cancer is so largely ignored," says Bonnie. "I have had five people in my family develop lung cancer … including myself. Three have died. There is no cure yet and when you are diagnosed with cancer you have it forever. It looms over your life like the dark shadow on the scan. I want to make a difference for my children, my grandchildren and all the people out there that have a shadow on their lung and haven’t been to the doctor yet." What makes lung cancer so challenging to take on is that most Americans aren’t aware that lung cancer is the leading cancer killer in both men and women in the U.S. An estimated 162,000 deaths occur annually from lung cancer and death rates are rising in African-American and Caucasian women and both men and women who do not have a history of smoking. Many are also unaware that, like breast cancer, lung cancer can be inherited and is prevalent in non-smokers. In response to these staggering statistics and her own inspirational survival story, Bonnie launched the foundation on March 6, 2006, the very same day Dana Reeve, a non-smoker, passed away from lung cancer. Bonnie knows all too well the benefits of early screening firsthand, and credits early screening along with the intervention of her knowledgeable doctors at CHW Sequoia Hospital and UCSF’s Thoracic Oncology Program for saving her life. "A CT scan saved my life. I paid for it myself and because of that I am still alive," says Bonnie. She has vowed to spend all of her time fighting for early detection for lung cancer to have options just like the mammogram, PSA and colonoscopy. "We need to discover lung cancer as early as possible to save lives." Early detection, she says is the answer for all cancer. Caught at stage one, the lung cancer survival rate can be as great as 92 percent, a staggering difference between the 15.5% it is at now in later stages. The one-year survival rate for stage IV is two percent. Although mine was Stage IIIb and I am celebrating almost 5-years as a survivor, I am one of the very lucky few." Bonnie attributes her healing to the CT scan that brought her a diagnosis, leading-edge treatment and her supportive network of doctors and family members. "Once the shock was over and I began to accept the fact that I had cancer I became very focused on recovering," says Bonnie. "Although in the recesses of my mind I knew that Stage IIIb Lung Cancer was very serious, I was determined to beat it. I am very blessed to have a big and loving family but I felt that I needed to be strong for them......The only place I ever cried was in the shower. I knew that if I cried in front of them the dam would burst and I didn’t want to scare them any more than they already were. My little grand daughter, Bella, would always ask me if my "owie" was all gone. I would assure her that it was." These days, the foundation works tirelessly to raise awareness and educate the public about the benefits of early screening, last year unveiling a subway and bus advertising campaign in New York City, San Francisco, Atlanta and Los Angeles generously donated by friends of the foundation and CBS Outdoor. The foundation is also gaining international attention, with an impressive roster of supporters ranging from Deborah Morosini, M.D. and sister of Dana Reeve to Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE), who are leading legislative efforts to eradicate lung cancer. On November 15, 2009, the foundation will hold its third annual "Simply the Best Dinner Gala," in San Francisco. Each year, the events have drawn crowds of more than 650 from across the country. This year’s event will honor and pay tribute to the man who helped revolutionize television news - Peter Jennings, who sadly lost his battle with lung cancer. "Our goal is to highlight creative, beautiful, wonderful, supportive and contributing people who happen to get lung cancer and leave this world too early," says Bonnie. Lynn Sherr and Kayce Jennings will join the event to honor Jennings’s life as journalist and news anchor, husband and father, and one whom millions came to know over the years. All of this keeps Bonnie hopping on planes from New York to Mongolia and around the globe again to raise awareness and gain support for her efforts to eradicate lung cancer. She speaks to lung cancer patients and survivors almost every day. "Hopefully because they can talk to someone that has experienced what they are going through it brings them hope," says Bonnie. Also when they do their research they find us (the foundation) and know that there are people out there that are working diligently to care for them and change their future," says Bonnie. "As a survivor myself I am proud to be doing this. I have worked ‘gainfully’ all of my life. But, doing this work is so much more fulfilling. The "’tangible’ asset is hearing the voice of someone newly diagnosed and knowing that I made them feel just a little better.....even if only for a moment." What inspires Bonnie the most are the patients, the survivors and their families. bonnie@lungcancerfoundation.org www.lungcancerfoundation.org
Meet Bonnie Addario:
"I wouldn’t be honest if I didn’t tell you that I have had my days that I wonder what I have gotten myself into," says Bonnie. "This is an almost around-the-clock job and if I wasn’t doing this I would have time to do all the things I dreamed about when I was working, travel, time with my grandchildren, sitting on a beach watching the sun set, sleeping in. But when I speak to someone who is newly diagnosed and I hear the fear and terror in their voice, I know that this is what I am meant to do. How many times in one’s life does the opportunity to make a difference come along?
