Survivors
Survivors have many things in common - facing the fears, problems and difficult situations arising from a diagnosis of breast cancer. What makes each survivor unique is how they handle the most trying moments of their lives. The stories below celebrate the strength of the survivors in our communities.
We admire your grace, humor and courage. Each one of you inspires and encourages us to continue the fight to end breast cancer. Thank you for sharing your story with us and the other survivors in Connecticut.
Featured Survivor
Survivors Archive
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Wednesday, December 1st 2010
Cathy Esposito
After the death of her father, a daughter continues to share a bond with the special man who saved her life.
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Sunday, August 1st 2010
Donna Mannix
July 20th, 2009 is a day that I will remember for the rest of my life. I had dreaded this moment for the past two years; I knew it was coming, but nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to experience.
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Thursday, April 1st 2010
Mary Buckley-Davis
For Mary Buckley-Davis, a breast cancer diagnosis has given her a very healthy dose of gratitude along with the ability to help other women in the same place she was just over four years ago.
The 52 year old respiratory therapist from Oakdale was diagnosed with breast cancer via a routine mammogram. “Everyone I know who has breast cancer, never thought it could happen to them,” Mary says. But the statistics are 1 in 8 women, she says. “So it’s not a question of why me, but why not me?”
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Monday, February 1st 2010
Betsy Daniels
The first time Woodbury resident Betsy Daniels ran the Komen Connecticut Race for the Cure, she did so because she wanted a nice flat running course to challenge herself as a runner.
However, the next time Betsy came to Bushnell Park for the Komen Connecticut Race for the Cure in June of 2007, her experience was a whole lot different—she wore pink and ran the 5k as a survivor. Betsy was diagnosed with breast cancer in January of 2007 at the age of 46.
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Sunday, November 1st 2009
Laura Munson
Many people facing breast cancer will equate their personal journey from patient to survivor with a feeling that they have climbed a mountain. But for one Connecticut woman, actual mountain climbing with her family literally got her through the tough times in her own battle with breast cancer.
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Tuesday, September 1st 2009
Rose Gerber
“Everybody finds a niche…for me, it was to become informed and educated.” That is just one of the most important goals Rose Gerber set for herself after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2003.
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Monday, June 1st 2009
Katrice Gibson
Katrice Gibson strives to show her two daughters and son every day that breast cancer will not defeat her
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Sunday, March 1st 2009
Denise Fagan
The power of positive thinking is the most important part of trying to get cured. That is just one of the life lessons Denise Fagan has learned from battling stage IV breast cancer.
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Thursday, January 1st 2009
Maria Duncan
In my nearly 42 years on this earth, it’s only recently that I’ve truly appreciated what it means to pay it forward. I’ve learned that you can help so many people by just sharing a personal experience, holding their hand through a rough time and saying “yes, I’ve been there too and we’ll fight through it.”
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Monday, December 1st 2008
Bunnie Webster
Darlene Briggs remembers when she was a teenager and their dad died of cancer. She imagines today how hard it was for her mom, Ronnie, with five girls and a boy – some, quite young. If it wasn’t for Mom’s friend Bunnie Webster and others, she’s not sure how everything might have turned out.
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Monday, September 1st 2008
Diane Harrington
Diane Harrington of Ellington was named 2008 New Balance Survivor at the Komen Connecticut Race for the Cure on Saturday June 7, 2008. Harrington was honored for her strength in battling her own breast cancer and her dedication to raising awareness about the disease
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Sunday, June 1st 2008
Maggie Gardner
Maggie Gardner thought a marriage on the rocks was a trauma. Then she found out she had breast cancer. And after that, well, she survived breast cancer a second time!
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Tuesday, April 1st 2008
Robin Graham
Robin Graham, 49, is nearing her 12th breast cancer survivor anniversary in October but she doesn’t focus on the past.
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Thursday, February 14th 2008
Chantal Laliberte
Chantal Laliberte had been receiving annual mammograms for years. In October 2003, an irregularity was discovered and after further investigation, Chantal can still remember her emotions when her doctor informed her that she had positive test results for breast cancer. “I was completely overwhelmed, shocked and I knew it would change my life.”
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Wednesday, August 1st 2007
Cathy Gautot
Cathy Gautot, an employee of Yale New Haven Hospital, took the term early detection to a new level. Gautot has a considerable amount of breast cancer in her family. Her mother, grandmother, and aunt have all been afflicted with the disease. It was because of this that Gautot began annual doctor visits at age 18. This proactive attitude quite possibly saved Gautot’s life.
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Sunday, March 11th 2007
Barbara Steele
Young mother Barbara Steele was nursing her newborn daughter when she decided “something did not feel right.” At 32 and with no family history of breast cancer, her OB-GYN told her not to worry.” He said, “It doesn’t feel like cancer.” However, Barbara’s intuition told her something was wrong.
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Friday, January 19th 2007
Jo Villecco
Benefit Liaison at Gaylord Hospital and retired banker, Jo Villecco of Cheshire was diagnosed with ”infiltrating ductile carcinoma with extensive duct carcinoma in situ” following an annual mammogram in October 2003. No stranger to breast cancer, Jo lost her mother to breast cancer and her sister, Rita, is a 10 year survivor!
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Friday, December 1st 2006
Melissa Burns
It started as a present from Scrooge but evolved into a Christmas carol of peace, love and support.
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Monday, October 30th 2006
Cindy Martinez
Cindy Martinez and husband, Luis, of Glastonbury, were devastated to learn about Cindy’s breast cancer seven years ago. But the challenges, both say, have strengthened their marriage and their character.
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Friday, September 1st 2006
LuAnn Leclerc
“Stay calm,” LuAnn Leclerc whispered to herself as she felt the presence of a lump in her breast in September of 2002. She silently prayed, “This has to be nothing.”
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