MUNSTER | The packed room at this year’s Share the Love luncheon demonstrated the event’s goal: Come together to support cancer patients and their caregivers.
The luncheon, which took place Feb. 15 at The Center for Visual and Performing Arts, was hosted by Friends of the Cancer Resource Centre in conjunction with the auxiliaries of Community Hospital, St. Catherine Hospital and St. Mary Medical Center. Proceeds from the event’s ticket sales and raffles benefit the Cancer Resource Centre in Munster.
Marie Forszt, vice president of marketing and corporate communications at Community Healthcare System, served as emcee of the event, which made its return after a two-year hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“When you support the Cancer Resource Centre, you are putting dollars toward education and programs for residents in Northwest Indiana, free of charge. So when a person faces a cancer diagnosis, they have a place to go where they will be heard, where they may be vulnerable and where someone will take their hand, and say, ‘I’ve been down this road before, and I’m right here with you,’ ” Forszt said. “Your support also helps caregivers find answers and navigate a range of their own emotions.”
Guests mingled, hugged and shared laughs at the much-missed event.
“After the last couple of years of losing network and losing contact with people, it’s important to get back out,” attendee Amy Blaker said. “There’s nothing like the human touch and human interaction. There’s no substitution for it, and being able to see people again lifts my heart.”
More than 250 people purchased tickets to the event, which also offered vendor booths featuring unique items for sale; demonstrations, including chair yoga and chair massage; and a speech by motivational guest speaker Bill Nelson.
Nelson, author of “Firm Grip – Learning to Thrive When Life Doesn’t Go as Planned,” shared his story of being diagnosed with cancer and how it changed him – for the better.
Nelson, a Valparaiso University School of Law graduate and longtime attorney, recalled facing a difficult mental battle after his diagnosis, but by learning to be grateful and hopeful he was able to enjoy life more than ever before.
“Many of you may feel like a piece of you is slowly dying, and I’m telling you that you don’t have to live that way,” he said. “I’m not talking about some magic pill or a Band-Aid or toxic positivity that says if you just think happy thoughts we’ll all be fine, because the truth is, grief doesn’t have an end date. You will always suffer pain, you will always grieve, and you will still suffer loss, but, in the process of all that, you get to choose how you respond. A little bit of hope can go a long way.”
To learn more about the Cancer Resource Centre, visit myccrf.com/about-us/cancer-resource-centre/programs.