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Cancer survivors create Yellow Brick outreach center
By Sean Barron
YOUNGSTOWN
Brenda George recalled being tired a lot after having made preparations for her daughter’s wedding in 2007 and how she simply attributed her fatigue to the hard, time-consuming work.
The last thing on her mind, though, was that her lethargy was a prelude to thyroid cancer.
“The diagnosis scared me to death, and at first, you think there’s no hope,” the Marysville, Ohio, woman said.
Far from succumbing to her grief, however, George has used her experience with cancer to reach out to others who also have been diagnosed with the disease. One such outreach effort was having been the keynote speaker at a four-hour open house Saturday to usher in Yellow Brick Place, a resource and wellness center for cancer survivors and their loved ones at 2959 Canfield Road in Cornersburg.
Donna Detwiler and Anna Aey, both of whom are cancer survivors, founded the facility.
Yellow Brick Place provides individual and group services in a comfortable environment during the fight against cancer for those with the disease as well as their families and caregivers, according to its mission statement.
The facility has a resource library, counseling for those with cancer and their loved ones, art therapy and information on nutrition, relaxation and yoga. Also offered is Reiki, a healing technique based on the idea that the therapist can channel energy to the person via touch to activate the body’s natural healing abilities and restore physical and emotional well-being.
All services are free and nonmedical to those in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties.
George, an advocate for the American Cancer Society’s Voices of Hope organization, told her audience that a routine checkup revealed a lump in her neck and that an MRI showed she had seven nodules on her thyroid gland. Soon after, she had a biopsy and her thyroid removed before receiving radiation treatments, she noted.
“Now, I’m cancer-free,” said George, who also has shared her challenges and triumphs in her book, “Rejoicing Through the Tears: Embracing God’s Hand in Cancer.”
In addition, she discussed at the open house the value of enjoying life and family, maintaining a sense of humor, following up with doctor’s appointments and eating a healthful diet.
Aey, of Canfield, was diagnosed in 2005 with advanced non-Hodgkins lymphoma, a type of cancer that originates in the lymphatic system and often spreads throughout the body. At the time, she had four children age 3 to 10, but has been in remission nine years after having had a stem-cell transplant, she explained.
Aey said she was pleased with how she was received and treated while recovering at The Gathering Place in Cleveland and wanted to use that facility as a template for Yellow Brick Place.
“When I was in remission, I felt it was my mission to bring something like this to the Mahoning Valley,” Aey said. “All of our services are free of charge, so there are no obstructions for people to get what they need.”
Echoing that thought was Detwiler of North Lima, a 20-year oncology nurse and 12-year cancer survivor. She was diagnosed in 2003 with myeloma, a cancer that forms in the plasma cells and often compromises the body’s immune system, leaving it susceptible to infection.
Detwiler recalled receiving a stem-cell transplant in 2008 at Cleveland Clinic after undergoing chemotherapy a year earlier. For a while, she did well, but relapsed and needed further treatment, and met Aey at The Gathering Place.
“The people you meet along your journey, and when touched by them, changes your priorities. It makes you a better person,” said Detwiler, adding that she tries to help at least one person with cancer at a time.
For more information on Yellow Brick Place, go to www.yellowbrickplace.org or call 234-228-9550.
Also available at Saturday’s open house was information on a free oral cancer screening, set for 4 to 7 p.m. Oct. 6 at the Dorothy Day House, 620 Belmont Ave., Youngstown. Call 330-480-3181 to register.
Organizers also scheduled a 5-kilometer Color Run/Walk beginning at 9 a.m. today in Austintown Township Park on Kirk Road. Registration is set for 8 a.m.