Cheerful Heart brings comfort

Erin Scott, Leader Staff

Survivors, patients and loved ones dealing with cancer are not alone; a local charity offers support for anyone affected by the disease.

Cheerful Heart is a charity whose volunteers provide non-medical, individual assistance to residents of Lake County who are battling cancer. Volunteers assist with transportation, shopping, meal preparation, mail pick-up, light house work and yard work, respite care, errands and more.

Aside from helping people with daily activities, the charity also provides encouragement and emotional comfort to those dealing with cancer. A cancer support group, led by Terri Haynal and Tammy Walston, meets every Monday, from 12-1 p.m., at the United Methodist Church in Polson.

The group strives to maintain an informal, fun and warm atmosphere, Walston said. Through the group, people are able to share their stories and meet others who either have or are dealing with the same cancer issues.

"It's hard to reach out," Walston said, describing her breast cancer diagnosis in 2005. The doctor offered to give her a support group's phone number, but she told him she didn't need it.

"Of course you say no," Walston said. "You say, 'I can do this.' Then you go home and fall apart."

She said the first few weeks after diagnosis are the worst.

Walston said she didn't know anyone with cancer when she was diagnosed. It was the same for Haynal, who said she felt alone and uncertain after her diagnosis in 2002.

After surviving breast cancer for several years and helping others with cancer, the women met each other a year ago through Cheerful Heart.

"You form a special bond with cancer survivors," Walston said. "If I can save anybody some of the fear I went through, it's worth it."

The women serve soup to chemo therapy patients at St. Joseph Hospital every Tuesday. Haynal said, despite popular opinion, the hospital is not scary or depressing.

Haynal, attempting to describe the feeling of helping a patient through all the stages of recovery, recalled the worry and fear of a newly diagnosed woman - as well as the glow and triumph of that same woman six months later.

"I can't even explain what that feels like," Haynal said, adding that she remembers telling the woman everything was going to be fine when she was first diagnosed. Haynal said the woman remembered too, and thanked her.

Walston said when she was diagnosed her whole life changed.

"It was the scariest day of my life," she said, adding that breast cancer has made her appreciate her friends, family and husband more. "You realize what's really important to you."

Haynal is very open about her breast cancer fight.

"All this stuff is not fun or easy," Haynal said. "You don't go through it to keep it to yourself."

Although the two women survived their battle with breast cancer, there's still a chance the cancer could return. Walston and Haynal said one of the ways they deal with that uncertainty is through humor, adding that laughter and education have always helped them battle cancer.

If cancer is caught early, it's easier to treat, making it vital to have routine mammograms done.

If there is a family history of breast cancer, it is important to get a mammogram, regardless of age; both St. Luke and St. Joseph hospital have a program for low-income women, allowing them to get the necessary mammograms, Haynal said. Men are also susceptible to breast cancer, so they should conduct self-examinations as well, Walston added.

For more information, call Tammy Walston at 676-4868, or Terri Haynal at 883-1580.