Thanks to Pastor Earl Shannon and the St. Luke COGIC for the outstanding monetary donation to presented to Sisters Network Memphis Chapter.
Carolyn Whitney
President

Keeping the Faith
by Addie Strong Posted: Tue., Sep. 18, 2007 , 12:26 pm EDT

As a breast cancer survivor and president of Sisters Network, Carolyn Whitney found a way to educate other women and strengthen spirits — including her own.

Carolyn Whitney hadn’t had a mammogram or done a breast self-exam in several years. In fact, she used to tease her doctor for his constant requests that she start doing the monthly exams on her own. “Because I had small breasts, I didn’t think it would be necessary,” she says. “I joked all the time, ‘When I lie down, they disappear anyway!’”

Then, in September 2000, when she was 62 years old, Whitney happened to feel a lump in her breast while she was at work as a teacher for Memphis City Schools. Describing herself as “hardheaded,” she waited two weeks before making a doctor’s appointment. Although her physician did not notice anything strange during the visit, Whitney’s husband did feel a lump and saw a blue-tinted indentation in her breast later that day. Whitney returned to the clinic that same evening and was sent for a mammogram and an ultrasound. These tests finally diagnosed her with Stage 1 breast cancer.

“God was with me — he didn’t let me panic,” says Whitney. “He didn’t allow that information to break my spirit.” Instead, she consulted a surgeon, who gave her the choice between a mastectomy and a lumpectomy. At the time, Whitney had never even heard of a lumpectomy, but after much thought and many prayers, she opted for the less-invasive procedure. “I instructed them to remove whatever they found,” she recalls. “I said, ‘Don’t wake me up and tell me we’ve got to go back and do this again.’”

Although Whitney had only noticed a lump and strange marks on her right breast, her doctors also found four lumps in her left breast and performed a double lumpectomy. Fortunately, the masses in her left breast were benign (not cancerous); however, the tumor in her right breast was malignant, as were four of the 18 lymph nodes they removed from the right side of Whitney’s body.

After recovering from her surgery, Whitney had four chemotherapy treatments as well as 33 radiation sessions. Despite the harsh side effects — “My taste buds were shot to the curb. I didn’t want to eat anything because everything had that metallic taste,” she says — Whitney feels blessed to have come through relatively unscathed. “The radiation gave me a gorgeous tan,” she says, laughing. “I’m lucky because I’ve seen so many people who’ve had to stop their treatments because of the burns. I saw how it could have been as opposed to how it was.”

Much of her strength during those grueling months, she says, came from a dedicated and loving support system that included her husband and extended family. Her brother, who is 11 years younger, came to each and every one of her treatment sessions. “He came before work and stayed with me until it was time for him to go back to work,” Whitney remembers. “And he was there in the evenings to make sure I was OK.”

Meanwhile, Whitney’s fingernails and toenails had turned black, and her hair had fallen out from the chemo. “I never wanted to look sick just because I was sick,” she says. “It’s a mind thing.” Because she couldn’t get manicures (the chemo had made her immune system too weak), Whitney began doing her own nails to keep them strong. “I watched them grow back to the way they were — strong, healthy and beautiful,” she says. Her hair, however, was another story. The wigs she had been wearing hurt her sensitive scalp, but Whitney’s daughter was concerned that she’d catch a cold without something to cover her head. Finally, during one of her chemo sessions, Whitney’s daughter removed the shawl she was wearing and draped it over Whitney’s bare head.

The head wraps put an end to the painful wigs, and they started a whole new chapter in Whitney’s life — literally. In 2006, Whitney published her first book, “Wrapped in God’s Blessings.” One such blessing in her life? Sisters Network Memphis Chapter, the local affiliate of a breast cancer survivorship organization for African American women.

After hearing about the group from her nephew and a Nashville member, Whitney wrote Sisters Network’s national office to request more information. She organized the first executive board meeting of the new Memphis chapter in February 2005, and held the first official meeting for all members in March. Since then, as both the founder and president, Whitney has seen her chapter grow from 20 to 75 members. “So many African American women are being affected [by breast cancer],” Whitney says. “Our goal is to reach as many as we can to give as much information as we can about mammograms, breast self-exams and clinical breast exams.”

Two members recently learned that their breast cancer had metastasized and spread to other areas of their body. Whitney and the other women bring them greeting cards at every meeting, organize a prayer line and have a phone committee to keep everyone in touch. “We try to let them know that we are as close as the telephone,” Whitney explains, “and that they don’t have to wait until we meet if the need to talk to someone. We’re pretty close-knit. We’re a family. We try to celebrate life as often as we can together.”

Diagnosed in: 2000

On her faith: “It’s a blessing to be able to talk about where I am now as opposed to where I was. The strength I’ve gained. The faith — a deeper faith in God — I have because of where I was. It makes you appreciate life so much more.”

Her source of support: Her husband, daughter, brother and the rest of her family.

Role model: “My mom, who passed away. She worked so hard to make sure my life would be different. I never knew what we didn’t have because there was so much love and giving in our family.”

Her next big goal: To be a professional singer. “Just to be able to tell my story and end it with a praise song — that’s my dream.”

Nominated to be a Lifetime TV breast cancer hero by: Sisters Network

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Link to Lifetime TV Article:
http://www.lifetimetv.com/community/my-lifetime-commitment/breast-cancer/portrait/keeping-faith 

Breast cancer survivor goes ‘Hollywood’
By Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell | Published  10/18/2007

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Never in her wildest dreams did Carolyn Whitney ever think that her breast cancer diagnosis seven years ago would take her to Hollywood as a star attraction. But Tuesday night at the world-famous Beverly Wilshire Hotel, she strolled down the “pink” carpet into a lavish reception to accept a 2007 Lifetime TV Hero Award. (Pink is the signature color for breast cancer awareness. Whitney was selected from thousands of women across the nation associated with the Sisters Network to be honored for her phenomenal work with African-American breast cancer survivors “This honor is just beyond anything I could have dreamed up,” she said. “I am enjoying all this star treatment because of a diagnosis I thought would devastate my life.” The irony of this commendation was not lost on her. Sisters Network Inc. (SNI) is the only African-American breast cancer survivor organization in America. The organization’s founder, Karen Jackson joined Whitney in Hollywood to share the big moment. “This event has just been spectacular,” said Jackson. “But that’s what we try to do as an organization. We work to maintain the quality of life for African-American women who have been diagnosed. We like to have fun, and we are constantly looking for opportunities to bring attention to breast cancer and enjoy life in the process.” Whitney was commended for founding SNI’s Memphis chapter. In only three years, the local branch is recognized as one of the most active among the 40 affiliate chapters.
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Distinguished for her creative head wraps and high-profile work in the local healthcare community, Whitney was one of 10 women from various breast cancer survivor organizations chosen to receive the 2007 Lifetime TV Hero Award. A reception and dinner event, where the awards were presented, preceded a premiere screening of “Matters of Life and Dating,” a Lifetime Original movie about a woman diagnosed with breast cancer and her struggle to move beyond the experience. SNI was organized by Jackson in Houston, Texas, several years after being diagnosed with breast cancer in 1993. There were various support groups at that time, but Jackson had a specific mission with SNI. “What Sisters Network did was dispel the myth that African-American women do not care about their health,” she said. “There was no organized effort before that time for African-American survivors to come together, share information, and support each other. And it was just important for people to know that we, as Black people and as Black women, do care about our health, just as others are concerned about theirs.”
 

In 1999, the Sisters Network broke new ground by hosting the nation’s first national breast cancer conference to specifically address the impact of the disease among African American women. Houston, Atlanta, and Detroit are among the cities that have hosted the event. Hundreds of women from all over the nation attend. Memphis has been chosen as the SNI’s national conference site for 2008. “Stop the Silence” is the organization’s national slogan. Carolyn Whitney (left), dressed in classic pink, presents the SNI Memphis 2007 Survivor of the Year award to Althea Woodruff, SNI vice-president, at the Annual Pink Ribbon Awards Luncheon. Woodruff is a 28-year breast cancer survivor.

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The SNI Memphis Chapter

Whitney and the SNI Memphis hosted their Annual Pink Ribbon Awards Luncheon on Saturday, Aug. 25. Althea Woodruff, SNI vice-president and a 28-year survivor, was named 2007 Survivor of the Year.    Woodruff credited her faith in God and support from her loved ones and friends with getting her through the most difficult time of her life. She recalled feeling a lump in her breast while watching television in her den. When a physician verified that a biopsy was necessary, Woodruff was told before she went in that if cancer was found, her breast would be removed immediately. She prepared herself for the worse upon waking. ,“Now, there are so many treatments available that a mastectomy is not always necessary,” she said. “But 28 years ago, that was really the only effective treatment. But I thank God for it. I have my life today, and it’s a great life.” Hundreds of Memphis-area breast cancer survivors are a part of SNI.
 

For additional information, contact Sisters Network Memphis at (901) 789-7239 or send an email to: carolyn@sistersnetworkmemphis.com.

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Link to Article at Tri-State Defender:
http://tri-statedefenderonline.com/articlelive/articles/2084/1/Breast-cancer-survivor-goes-Hollywood/Page1.html�

CONGRATULATIONS TO CAROLYN

The national office of Sisters Network has nominated Carolyn Whitney as the outstanding member to represent SNI at the Lifetime TV hero award in Los Angeles, Ca. in October.