Conspiracy of Hope

Ottawa to Atlanta

Posted by

0

I can’t tell you how excited I am to be heading from Ottawa to Atlanta on Friday for the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting. This is a huge conference, with 20,000-30,000 of the top cancer researchers in the world, plus many clinicians and so many others … including me! I’m participating in their “Scientist <–> Survivor Program”, which groups cancer survivor advocates with mentors, both in advocacy and also science. That’s right: we get connected with an expert in cancer advocacy, and also a scientist mentor to help us make the most of this amazing conference! There are so many sessions, but no one can go to them all. I’ve been trying to plan which to attend, and I’m facing scheduling conflicts. So many great options!

I’m thankful they have a conference app to help us figure it all out, because this event is packed with possibilities! If you are curious about what’s happening and who will be presenting, you can browse the sessions and check out abstracts from the comfort of your own home. Here’s a link to investigate the sessions and presentations. Here’s the link to my abstract. And this is the link to donate to the great work that the AACR does, through supporting my 5K walk on Saturday morning.

The app also has maps to help us find places. No getting lost at AACR Annual Meeting 2019! It will even show the path to walk from where one is to where a particular session is taking place. (In case you were wondering, it would take about 15 days to walk from where I am now to the Georgia World Congress Center, home to this preeminent cancer research showcase. I’ll stick to my plan to fly!)

Yes, I am quite excited about this privilege to participate in the AACR Scientist <–> Survivor Program. I feel very honoured that I get to be at the Annual Meeting, and I know I’m representing Canada as well as lung cancer patients, survivors and advocates. I will endeavour to make the most of this opportunity, and I expect I will spend time with exceptional people and learn a lot while I’m there.

I wish I could take all of you with me! Since we can’t all go, I’m going to try to do the next best thing. Here is one of the ways I’m going to step out of my comfort zone while I’m in Atlanta: I’m planning to post videos on YouTube of my time there.

Here’s a link to my first one! I hope you’ll follow my adventure in Atlanta on YouTube!

Choose HOPE! Inspire courage. Incite hope. Foment communities of hope.

#AACR19 #AACRSSP19

Sharing Hope

Posted by

0

An encouraging email from a dear friend this morning reminded me that if you don’t follow me on facebook, you may not know how grateful I am for your generous flow of donations which filled my LUNGevity Summit Survivor Challenge account all the way to the top and even a little bit over! I am excited to be going to LUNGevity Foundation’s International Lung Cancer Survivorship Conference in Washington, DC, April 26-28!! THANK YOU!!!

I am grateful to be blessed in so many ways, and one of the biggest gifts is my community, my circle of friends who hold me with such love. Thank you for being part of that community. I have no words for how grateful I am for you.

Yesterday my husband bumped into a teacher from back in our eldest’s elementary school days. She told him she follows this blog and prays for me every night. When he told me, I got a little teary with gratitude. I can’t tell you how many times people have said they read this blog and think of me and/or pray for me regularly. Thank you! You are making a difference!

You help me have hope! Thank you!

As my dear friend said in her email, I have opportunity to share amazing hope… here in Ottawa, in Atlanta the end of this month, at the LUNGevity conference in April, and who knows where else! Thank you for the ways you help me open up the doors!

Heartbreak, Hymns and Hope

Posted by

3

Thank you for your prayers and kind words. My husband Jono’s dear Mum, with family by her side, slipped away to Jesus earlier this week. We are grateful to God for comfort and love, and for the care, prayers and kind words of many people. Here are Jono’s words from his fb post last Sunday:

My lovely mum Margaret said goodbye to this world today (Monday morning in Australia). Her passing was peaceful, and pain-free as far as we can tell: my dad Jim holding her as they lay together; he and my sister Angela singing hymns to her; and I was kind of there, as Jill had recorded some hymns I was playing at church this morning and sent the audio files, which she listened to as she was slipping away. Deeply grateful for a life well-lived: for the love that’s surrounded me from before I was born; for kindness, nurture and example that set me on the path of life. Thanks everyone for your many thoughts and prayers; they have sustained and blessed us beyond what I can express. (Photo is from about 2 weeks ago – so glad we had that time to spend with her.)

We are heartbroken, but we have hope. We are people of faith, and we believe in the resurrection. We’ve seen hints of it, even in the planting of seeds in our garden in spring.

#hope #ConspiracyofHope