Well hello there! I’m so glad you ventured onto this page of my website. It’s a little deeper peek into what makes me tick. First a little backstory.
In 2011, I was a newlywed with a successful speaking career. I had published two biographies (the second one had just been optioned for a movie) and was mulling over the subject of the next project.
In addition, my eldest son was about to deploy to Afghanistan as a career counter-intelligence agent for the Air Force. THAT was where I had planned for all of my worry energy to go.
And then I heard those terrible words … “You have cancer.”
Are you kidding me? This couldn’t have come at a worse time. But in reality, does cancer ever come at a “good” time?
Mine was Triple Negative breast
cancer, very aggressive, requiring very aggressive treatment. After a mastectomy and 18 rounds of chemotherapy, I had no evidence of disease. Nor was there much evidence of the previous Judy. So what this new Judy supposed all about?
I was in search of the next biography to write. But I also began meeting other women survivors who were doing amazing things post-cancer. Using their gifts of life and experience, they were giving back to the world around them. And BAM – it hit me! There’s healing in helping.
I dug into that theory a little deeper. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who had. In 1995, Doctors Richard Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun began writing about that same thing, calling it Posttraumatic Growth: “The experience of positive change that occurs as a result of the struggle with highly challenging life crises.
Equally interesting is the research showing that there are great health benefits to this “helping is healing” thing. In a 2010 United Healthcare/Volunteer Match survey,
- 89% of respondents agreed that “volunteering has improved my sense of well-being.”
- 73% of respondents agreed that “volunteering lowers my stress levels.”
- 68% of respondents agreed that “volunteering has made me feel physically healthier.”
- And nearly 1/3 who suffered from a chronic condition agree that “volunteering has helped me manage my chronic illness.”
With that in mind, I created a little nonprofit called A 2nd Act. It’s premise was to support and celebrate women survivors of all cancers who were giving back to the greater good. Our fundraising was a live storytelling event (STARS: Survivors Tell A Real Story), which allowed us to make micro-grants to survivors ready to launch or grow their 2nd Acts.
Through the organization, I met the woman who became my first post-cancer biography. It was also the first in an accidental trilogy of cancer heroines. And every one of the books’ subjects are shining examples of 2nd Acts.
I’m back to spending my days as a writer, but the storytelling and fundraising continues today. Best of all, every one of the stories (now in excess of 50) can be accessed from anywhere on the website, STARSArizona.org. You can search by cancer type, or just watch them randomly. I guarantee you’ll be inspired to do good regardless of your life challenge!
