Poppy's Blog

Relay for Life of Second Life is back!

2010-01-29T14:23:00.000-08:00

RELAY FOR LIFE OF SECOND LIFE is back! The 2010 season starts Monday, February 1 when teams registration starts. Check for details on the RFL of SL Updates blog at:

http://rflofsl.blogspot.com/2010/01/relay-for-life-of-second-life-is-back.html

Has anyone seen Hope Haven?

2010-01-07T15:18:00.000-08:00

The building seems to have vanished while I was putting away the Christmas decorations.

Chews nails ...

I HOPE Bora has a spare copy ...

Cancer Survivors Support Group

2010-01-03T05:11:00.000-08:00

Have you just been diagnosed with cancer or are you going through treatment at the moment? Or have you completed your treatment and want to share your experiences with others? SL Cancer Survivors Group is a peer support group that meets every Thursday at 4pm SLT and every Sunday at 12 noon SLT in Second Life.

The group has been meeting regularly for over two years. Meetings are held in the safe surroundings of Hope Haven on the American Cancer Society in Second Life island. Attendance is open to everyone who has heard those words 'I'm sorry, you have cancer'. New members are very welcome. Come and meet fellow survivors, share your story, exchange information and experiences, vent, or just chat.

For carers, caregivers, and family members there is a separate group - SL Cancer Survivors Group.

For more details about how to join and a landmark to the meeting place please contact me.

Monthly cancer talk by Dr Ren Stonecutter

2010-01-03T04:45:00.000-08:00

'The good, the bad, and the downright ugly - tests to detect cancers'. That's the title of Dr Ren Stonecutter's talk today, in the American Cancer Society in Second Life Auditorium.

One in three of us will get cancer in our lifetime. And those of us who have been diagnosed with one cancer still have a chance of being diagnosed with a second 'primary cancer'.

So this talk is relevant to us all.

Join us at 1.30pm SL time in the auditorium to learn more.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/American%20Cancer%20Society/203/174/40

Limo to San Francisco please

2009-08-15T06:27:00.000-07:00

What is real and what is virtual? I’m in San Francisco for the Second Life Community Convention and sometimes it’s hard to believe I flew halfway round the world. It took me nearly two days to get here from the UK as the flight I was due to take on Monday was cancelled. Why didn’t I just tp here?

Wednesday, August 12 A good friend shows me some of the sights of San Francisco. We buy picnic foods at the Ferry Building and take the ferry out to Sausalito, passing Alcatraz island on the way and getting a fairly clear view of the Golden Gate Bridge, which has always been completely shrouded in fog on previous visits. A magical day, with time to relax and to get used to the time difference.

Thursday, August 13, 9 am. Time to set off for the Westin St Francis Hotel where the convention is being held. When I arrive I follow the noise up to the mezzanine floor. There’s a gathering crowd around what looks like a registration desk, but no badges or programs to be seen. Gradually the story unfolds. The registration materials have failed to rez. Otherwise it’s business as usual, and the sessions are due to start at noon. Aside from the slight inconvenience of not knowing who’s talking at any particular time, no-one seems particularly bothered by the lack of badges and programs. In fact, it acts as an ice-breaker and gets us talking to each other. I meet Frans Charming and Rhiannon Chatnoir who are familiar faces from last year. Somehow I manage to meet up with Bri and Pookie Gufler – one of the volunteers, Glennan Glenerg who like me is from the UK, takes a picture of me on his cell phone to show Bri if he sees him. Now why didn’t I think of that. Bri is the Health Track leader and we have had several meetings in world during the process of putting the track together. Bri introduces me to Pathfinder Linden who will be on a panel on Saturday with Treasure Ballinger, Ricken Flow, and myself.

And then, I meet Gentle Heron ...

I recognize Gentle by her voice and fall under her spell. Gentle is someone I have long admired and meeting her in person is a great thrill. She has multiple sclerosis and is unable to stand unaided, and if she has to go very far she uses a wheelchair, but she has turned her disability into a gift and has used her second life to make a difference not only for herself but also for many others. Gentle came into Second Life with several others looking for a community to support people with disabilities and when they didn’t find it they decided to create it. What started as the Heron Sanctuary has evolved into Virtual Ability, Inc., which now helps people with a wide range of disabilities to enter and thrive in Second Life. Earlier this year, Virtual Ability was one of two projects to win the first ever Linden Prize. It’s not hard to understand why. VA is fundamentally changing the way people play and learn in Second Life, and it is bound not to stop there as Gentle is still full of ideas for the future.

Somehow I navigate Gentle’s wheelchair (which was damaged on her flight to San Francisco) and we find a place to sit, and find ourselves talking with Dusan Writer, another person I’ve admired from a distance and who I learn later is Doug Thomson in real life, the CEO of Remedy Communications, and Shirlee Mills, who makes and sells pianos in Second Life. Later, Gentle introduces me to Harper Beresford and we three go off for lunch together, Harper takes over the driving and does a better job of it than me. The conversation sparks so many ideas. Later I look up Harper’s blog, called ‘Harper’s Bizarre’. It’s witty and insightful, just like its writer. There is food for thought in her blog piece about ‘charities in SL’.

In the evening we go to the Linden Lab Luau in the Yerba Buena Garden opposite the Moseum of Modern Art. At the door there are, of course, freebies ... It seems slightly surreal to be surrounded by so many Second Life residents and Lindens wearing brightly colored leis and eating real food. After the party Flash Alcott shows me the memorial to Martin Luther King which is behind a magnificent 50-foot waterfall. We listen to the water falling and read the inscription ‘No, No, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until “justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”’

And then on to the ‘Blarney Stone on Tour’ where the Blarney Stone Bar in Second Life has taken over the real life Sellers Market on Market Street for the evening. We listen to Second Life musicians in real life and drink beer. It’s the sign of a good party when the beer starts flowing and this one is no exception ... one glass of beer takes flight and lands on me! And it's REAL beer! So, back to the hotel to wash and brush up ...

Obama in Ghana ... and Second Life

2009-07-13T04:42:00.000-07:00

I don't often stray outside the remit of this blog, which I see as being to focus on information for and about cancer survivors in Second Life. But Saturday was exceptional.

I found myself sitting with avatar friends from all over the globe in Second Life, joined via a chatbridge to participants in Metaplace, watching President Obama speaking live to the people of Ghana. Wiping away a tear as he reminded Africans and people all around the world that: 'Africa's future is up to Africans ... I say this knowing full well the tragic past that has sometimes haunted this part of the world. After all, I have the blood of Africa within me, and my family's'.

Second Life is such a powerful immersive environment, that I felt as if I was watching from inside the parliament building in Accra, surrounded by friends.

As one of the people watching in Second Life said, politics aside, it is a tall order addressing Africa's social, and economic problems. There was not much new in the content of the President's speech, rather, it was the fact that he was there, affirming his own and America's commitment to help Africa to change and telling them 'yes you can'.

Which brings me back to the relevance of blogging about this event here. The President confirmed America's commitment to help Africa to carry forward the fight against HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, polio, to invest in public health systems that promote wellness and the health of mothers and children, through a comprehensive, global, health strategy.

The speech was followed by a panel discussion in Second Life moderated by Tori Annenburg. KentonKeith Kitalpha (Ambassador Keith Kenton), DNA Dumouriez (African musician Derrick Ashtong), and Timothy Bergson (African Studies professor, Timothy Burke) engaged in discussion with Second Life and Metaplace participants. I wasn't able to stay for long enough unfortunately to report on what sounded from the outset a very interesting discussion.

What a privilege is was to be watching this moment in a global community. Congratulations to the Vesuvius team and to others who were involved in making this event work.

The full transcript is on the White House website:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-by-the-President-to-the-Ghanaian-Parliament/

See my Flickr stream at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/poppy_zabelin/sets/72157621275521528/

Take a tour ... American Cancer Society in Second Life

2009-07-11T10:39:00.000-07:00

The official promotional video by MarkTwain White for the American Cancer Society's "Relay for Life in Second Life" campaign, which first screened at SL6B.

Virtual support for cancer survivors - a panel discussion at SL6B

2009-07-08T14:24:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, June 25 I moderated a panel discussion at SL6B at the American Cancer Society's exhibit 'The American Cancer Society in the Virtual World'. Five cancer survivors took part in this discussion where they described their experiences and how they felt about peer support in Second Life.

One of the questions that came up was, how does virtual support compare with real life support. The speakers made some important points, emphasizing the discoverability and accessibility of the SL support group and the low threshold for joining it.

Five different perspectives, from survivors in the USA, Canada, and Brazil, with different types of cancer, but with several common themes.

From left to right: Hilde, Les, Poppy (standing), Dwen, Tathi and Cinders

Hilde Hullabaloo, a thyroid cancer survivor in Canada, says she was never offered any support in real life. 'My doctors appeared to have no idea there is support out there for thyroid cancer patients, or didn't judge me in need of it. I was explicitly told to stay off the internet when it comes to thyroid cancer, because it would scare me.

'I don't drive and live in a very car-dependent area; there was no way I would have made it to a “real world” support group meeting, particularly not while I was tired and in pain. In the throes of treatment, I felt ashamed, depressed, and terrified; I found it difficult to express those feelings to anyone in the real world.

'The threshold for entering into SL's support group, while higher in terms of technology and bandwidth, was emotionally and physically lower.'

Les Karsin, a prostate cancer survivor in the USA, pointed out that one important difference between RL and SL support groups was accessibility. 'In SL it is much easier to find a group and easier to attend meetings than it would be for me in RL. All I had to do was search groups for the word "cancer," and the ACS survivors' group was right there. To attend meetings, all I have to do is sit down at my computer, log in, and TP to the meeting location.'

Les also prefers the relative anonymity provided by SL. '... [it] made it feel safer for me to attend the first few meetings. I am actually quite a shy person, and it would have been much harder for me to walk into a room full of people in RL for the first time and tell my story. On the other hand, now that I have experienced the benefits of a support group in SL, perhaps I will be more likely to seek out a group in RL at some point in the future.'

He has found e-mail based support groups helpful, but points out that '... meeting with a group in SL, in a virtual environment where I can see other people's avatars seated around me and interact with them in real-time, gives me a much stronger sense of presence and connection ...so, I think that SL provides many of the same benefits as meeting with a group in RL, but reduces some of the barriers that make it hard for a person like me to take that first step of joining a group. Another advantage of SL is that I get to meet and talk with people from all over the world, not just my local area. That gives me a sense that I am part of a much larger, global community of people who are fighting this disease.'

Dwen Dooley agrees. 'Anonymity, via an avatar that has ... or doesn't have to have ... a connection to your real name, can give you courage. You can talk about "private" matters in SL where you might feel there was a taboo about talking about it in "Real Life".

'Access can be another issue. SL offers desk or lap-top access to support without concern for travel, ramps, stairs, hills, cars, buses, trains ... the outdoors ... those limited by their RL bodies are mostly not as constrained by SL.

'In SL you can't hold a real hand, cry on a real shoulder, or get a "real" hug. [But] those who immerse themselves in SL are used to its limitations and accept them because they've seen such amazing benefits despite those limitations.'

Tathi Pessoa, a cancer survivor from Brazil, says: 'I’ve never been to a RL support group, its not usual in Brazil . I’m not aware of groups outside the big cancer hospitals and when I have to go to a cancer center usually I have to stay face to face with people in all kinds of state of cancer (normally very advanced ). It scares me a lot so I avoid this kind of places. SL can provide beautiful places and environments ... different from the scary one.'

Cinders Vale is a six-year breast cancer survivor in the USA. She had to give up her car several years ago and finds getting to real life support meetings, especially in the winter, is a problem.

She says: 'I think going to virtual meetings/chats for many is easier. It doesn't matter how bad you look or feel. You are still surrounded by those who have been where you are, and who understand. You can feel the support and caring. Survivors or caregivers who need to talk at any time of the day or night have access to group members. They can just open up the group IM window and see who answers them. Our virtual support system works just as well as any RL version. It does fulfil a need for many out there.'

Many thanks to all the participants for sharing their perspectives.

Milestone year for Relay For Life of Second Life

2009-07-08T13:33:00.000-07:00

In this milestone year for Relay for Life of Second Life, the American Cancer Society's real world head office in Atlanta, GA has issued a statement recognizing the passion and dedication of survivors and volunteers in Second Life.

'Celebrating its fifth year in the virtual world, the 2009 American Cancer Society Relay For Life® of Second Life is set for July 18-19 as avatars representing cancer survivors, caregivers, their families and the millions of passionate supporters gather virtually to celebrate the lives of those who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and join the American Cancer Society in fighting for every birthday, threatened by every cancer in every community.

'This year’s virtual world event is expected to attract in excess of 3,000 participants as more than 125 teams unite toward reaching a fundraising goal of $250,000. In 2008, Relay For Life of Second Life raised $215,000 – surpassing its total for the previous three years, combined. Simultaneously, the real-world American Cancer Society Relay For Life is in the midst of its 25th birthday year, as the world’s most successful nonprofit fundraising special event brings together more than 3.5 million people across the United States and 20 other countries to raise funds to embolden the American Cancer Society’s fight for every birthday, threatened by every cancer in every community.

'The 2009 Relay For Life of Second Life celebrates “One World…One Hope,” thematic of the Society’s global mission and of the scope of Relay participation in its real and virtual world environments.

'During this year’s registration rally in February, 40 teams pledged their support for the event and signaled the largest, single-day team registration in Relay For Life of Second Life history.'

Scott P. Bennett, American Cancer Society national vice-president, marketing, said:

“The engagement of these committed, virtual world volunteers continues to grow each year and demonstrates the enormous impact they have within the Second Life community and with encouraging others to join the American Cancer Society’s mission to help save lives and create a world with more birthdays.” He continued: “Virtual world Relay participants, just like those in the real world, are passionate about their involvement, and they powerfully reflect Relay’s worldwide reach.”

For more information about Relay for Life of Second Life, go to:

http://relayforlife.org/secondlife

For information about the American Cancer Society in real life go to:

http://www.cancer.org/

Ishtar Roux on air on'Two Martini Lunch'

2009-06-30T15:26:00.000-07:00

So there I was, sipping my martini 'shaken not stirred', at the Sunset Jazz Club, listening to the 'Two Martini Lunch' radio show on 'Martini in the Morning'.

My reason for being there? Cancer survivor and Relay for Life of Second Life team captain Ishtar Roux was being interviewed on the show by Brad 'Martini' Chambers.

Ishtar Roux and Whenever Timeless in purple dancing at the Sunset Jazz Club

'Ish' talked about the history of Relay for Life, not forgetting to mention that it is 'International', and explained how RFL of SL is very similar to RFL in real life. She also gave simple and easy-to-follow advice about how to find out more and take part. And all this while she was dancing ... WTG Ish!

Belle Loll and Poppy Zabelin watching the dancing as they listen to the radio program

If only someone had told me that I needed to throw on something more respectable than t-shirt and jeans!

Springtime!

2009-06-29T10:29:00.001-07:00

The Live Art Auction organized in Second Life by the RFL Survivors/Caregivers Committee was a great success judging by the results up to the time I went to bed. A good number of people turned out and there was some lively bidding competition.

The auction, which was due to be held last week but had to be rescheduled because large areas of SL went down, was organized by LadyKay Gable, with proceeds going to Relay for Life of Second Life.

I went to the auction set on one particular picture, and went home the proud owner of 'Spring #1' by Filthy Fluno. Filthy has long been one of my favorite artists in SL, and this particular work caught my interest because it is fresh, and bright, and full of hope. It is evocative of some of the artists whose works I admire, such as Matisse, and Kandinsky. And this particular picture reminded me of a time many years ago when I was feeling very low, and went out and bought a yellow couch to bring some sunshine and color into my life.

For more information about 'Filth' a.k.a. Jeffrey Lipsky see this New York Times article 'Portrait of an artist as an avatar':

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/09/news/09iht-08flunot.20688654.html?_r=2

Lots of smoke but no fire

2009-06-29T09:30:00.000-07:00

This year I am heading a team of 'ambassadors' to promote the international aspect of Relay for Life of Second Life. Like many others I've been concerned about the rumors out there that Second Life is being banned in Australia. I would have grave concerns about cancer survivors and supporters in ANY country being excluded from Relay for Life of Second Life, not to mention the wider ramifications of Second Lifers from any country being barred from entry into SL.

The source of the confusion appears to be a story published in the Sydney Morning Herald last week. Basically, selected ISP's are trialling a scheme to block access to adult content games. An internet critic is quoted in the article as saying that 'the move to extend the filtering to computer games would place a cloud over online-only games such as World of Warcraft and Second Life, which aren't classified in Australia due to their online nature.'

Now, a ‘cloud’ is NOT the same as an outright ban, although some sources have said it IS so. The Metaverse Journal responded on June 25 in a long open letter to the Australian Minister in question, Senator Conroy, objecting to the ban. Over the weekend the thread was picked up by hundreds of blogs and forums around the world. On Monday June 29 the Australian Christian Today wrote that: ‘It was confirmed by Australian Minister for Censorship that online games such as Second Life is (sic) banned in the country.’

There is nothing like checking the facts first. So Ember Farina, Australian ‘Ambassador’ for RFL of SL and Team Captain of the Friends Fighting Cancer RFL of SL team, who in real life is an Australian firefighter, contacted the office of the Senator in question and spoke with an associate there, and says: ‘It appears to be something related to GAME ratings. SL is not classified as a game at this stage. IF there was a complaint received in the future to the Gaming Commission then it would be addressed but his associate seemed fairly comfortable that it's not an issue in this circumstance.’

Ember went on to say: ‘I asked the Senator's associate if there was anything in writing to support this but there wasn't. As far as the Senator's associate was concerned this only came to light because a newspaper article jumped on it - SL was never mentioned nor targetted by the Senator.’

The whole thing seems to be a misinterpretation of the Australian government’s ongoing censorship/filtering scheme trying to block extreme violence games and child pornography. So it looks as if although there's a lot of smoke, there's no fire. Yet.

UPDATE

This morning I contacted Linden Labs who have now responded that: 'We have received no indication from the Australian government that it intends to block Second Life.'

Sources:

Sydney Morning Herald
http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/games/web-filters-to-censor-video-games-20090625-cxrx.html

Christian Today
http://au.christiantoday.com/article/second-life-banned-in-australia/6526.htm

Metaverse Journal
http://www.metaversejournal.com/2009/06/25/an-open-letter-on-virtual-worlds-for-senator-conroy/

Live art auction to benefit Relay for Life of Second Life

2009-06-26T14:09:00.000-07:00

The live art auction being organized by members of the RFLSL Survivors and Caregivers Committee that was due to be held last saturday had to be postponed because of the sim outages in Second Life. I understand from LadyKay Gable who is the auction's main organizer that the auction has now been rescheduled to SUNDAY JUNE 28.

Above: a sneak preview of some of the works that will be auctioned on Sunday

The auction will be held on the north shore of ACS island. Chase Marellan will be wielding the gavel. An amazing array of artists have donated their works. So come, dig deep in your pockets, and bid! All proceeds to the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life of Second Life.

The following artists have generously donated works:

Daruma Picnic, Sledge Roffo, Zhora Maynard, sakura2 Kohime, littleone Aries, Greenthumb Magic, StarZ33 Mccullough, LadyKay Gable, Silver Click, Elizabeth Tinsley, Delgado Cinquetti, Rain Somhers, Cheen Pitney, Cre8tive Chemistry, CHUCKMATRIX Clip, Josina Burgess, Sistagrlro Wei, Katarina Erin, Oberon Onmura, Artfox Daviau, Caitlin Tobias, Demi Blackhawk, Jazz Calhern, poi jarvinen2, Betty Tureaud, Maryva Mayo, Shellina Winkler, zephyru Zapedzki, Physeter Nicholls, Feathers Boa, Filthy Fluno, Misprint Thursday, and BrightamberG String. There is also a posthumous collection of works by Artistic Fimicoloud.

Take the SLURL to: http://slurl.com/secondlife/American%20Cancer%20Society/59/221/22.

The Future is NOW! ACS helps celebrate SL's sixth birthday

2009-06-26T04:31:00.000-07:00

The American Cancer Society, one of the finalists for the 2009 Linden Prize, is one of the organizations featured at Second Life's Sixth Birthday (SL6B).

The Society's site, designed by Emily Schaf, is located in SL6B Titan.

While the main focus of the American Cancer Society exhibit is on Relay For Life of Second Life, the site also features samples of other American Cancer Society real life programs, such as Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, International Relay For Life, and appropriately the American Cancer Society's More Birthdays campaign. The exhibit was also the venue for a panel discussion yesterday on virtual support for cancer survivors.

The exhibit features a cool new video by MarkTwain White describing the role of the American Cancer Society in Second Life.

It is humbling to be a part of this amazing organization. As 125 teams and more than 2000 volunteers prepare for the fifth Annual Relay For Life (to be held this year on July 18-19) it is clear that the American Cancer Society is making the future and setting standards in fundraising and support in virtual worlds … and that 'The Future of Charity in Virtual Worlds is NOW'!

SL6B runs until June 30. Don't miss seeing this exhibit - go to:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/SL6B%20Titan/65/142/24

For more information about exhibits and events at SL6B, check out the SL Wiki at http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/SL6B.

Register for the first lap of Relay for Life of Second Life!

2009-06-26T03:09:00.000-07:00

With less than a month to go, there's still time to register for the first lap of Relay for Life of Second Life!

The Fifth Relay for Life of Second Life will be held July 18-19 2009. More than 125 teams and 2,000 volunteers are hard at work raising funds to cure cancer. So far they've raised over $200,000 real American dollars!

The first lap honors cancer survivors and cancer caregivers from around the world. Survivors and caregivers walk the first lap to put a face to the battle against cancer. They've been on the 'front lines' in a battle on cancer, and are here to tell their story. Over 120 survivors and caregivers have already registered.

For more information on Relay for Life of Second Life, visit http://relayforlife.org/secondlife.

To register for the first lap, please go to that site and click on 'Survivor & Caregiver First Lap Registration'.

If you have any questions about the first lap or the Survivor/Caregiver Committee, please email Dwen Dooley, Chair, RFL of SL Survivor/Caregiver Committee, at dwendooley@gmail.com.

Makeover models on show in Hope Haven

2009-06-23T07:49:00.000-07:00

We've installed a viewer in Hope Haven where you can now see the 'before' and 'after' pics of the 'Makeover Magic' models. Come see.

Pictured above: Glenna Lane, a long-term breast cancer survivor and an active member of the cancer survivors group, after her makeover.

An angel's touch

2009-06-09T04:17:00.000-07:00

With all the coverage we've had for the Makeover Magic fashion show on the American Cancer Society island on Sunday, June 7 you'd think there would be nothing left to say. Well, not quite.

The fashion show went off flawlessly. The models - survivors, caregivers and mentors - looked stunning. But behind the scenes there were, putting it mildly, complications. One of them was losing our partner Runway Magazine who were co-sponsoring the event and responsible for the publicity ... who quite simply fell off the grid. The story's been blogged to death so I won't repeat it here, but it left Makeover Magic coordinator Cinders Vale and the committee members with quite a dilemma. Should we look for another partner? Should we postpone the show? Or fill the gap ourselves? We took the brave decision to handle it through the group's members and, judging by the results, I think it was the right way to go.

At one point it looked as if we might lose Glitter Xeltentat, a cancer survivor, from the program. And then an angel stepped in ... Italia Villota called Glitter a day before the show and took her shopping, and made sure she got on the runway.

Behind the scenes

Glitter poses on the runway

Glitter sparkled. She walked down the runway as if she'd had years of training (and I know how difficult it is, having walked the gangplank ... errr ... runway at the survivors' fashion show in 2007 ... it was like walking through thick, sticky, heavy glue). She glittered, she gleamed, with her SL family there to support her. And her new look suits her perfectly!

The final line-up

If you've read my previous post you'll know that we chose to hold the event on National Cancer Survivors Day, because it is about celebrating survival, and giving survivors (and their caregivers) a little pampering. Thank you Italia for showing us what NCSD is about!

A big thank you to all the fashion mentors, the FACES team, FACES CEO Aradia Dielli, the designers who donated items, and Jeremey Ryan of Barefoot Designs for the surprise gift of a home for each of the survivors and caregivers who took part in the show. To our photographers Jordan and Sharron. To Aryon Dagger for interviewing the participants. And last but definitely not least our coordinator, Cinders Vale. You are ALL angels!

The Art of Healing - exhibition at Karuna

2009-06-09T03:52:00.000-07:00

I have just visited Karuna where there is an exhibit of work by Sledge Ruffo on 'The Art of Healing'. Karuna is a non-profit sim that promotes AIDS/HIV awareness where stories are shared in music, literature, and art.

Sledge Roffo started making art in Second Life about a year ago, coining the word 'Primagery' to describe the process -- i.e., creating prim sculptures and then taking snapshots from various angles.

From the landing point I took a healing walk along the riverbank towards the Community Center. The images lining the path are bright and luminous but still surprisingly calming. There are some garden sculptures, and more 2D images inside the center and up on the roof including the limited edition 'primagery' collection.

Sledge writes: 'The work shown comprises a selection from a body of work that I have produced from November to January, with the exception of the sculptures displayed in the garden which are very recent. '

See:

http://makingartinsecondlife.blogspot.com/2009/06/karuna-healing-quest-starts-thursday.html

TP to the starting point here http://tinyurl.com/mk2s9h

Hair Fair to benefit cancer kids

2009-06-04T09:27:00.000-07:00

Mark your diary -June 20 is the Hair Fair, which will donate profits from sales of SL hair attachments to the real life non-profit Locks of Love. LoL gives hair pieces to kids who lose their hair due to chemotherapy or other medical crises. I bought some amazing hair there last year.

See James Wagner's blog at:

http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2009/06/hair-fair-coming.html

Celebrate survivorship!

2009-06-04T08:57:00.000-07:00

Sunday June 7 is National Cancer Survivors Day - and to celebrate, six survivors and caregivers who have been treated to a makeover will be parading their new looks along with their mentors at the Makeover Magic fashion show on the American Cancer Society island. The show kicks off at 11 am SLT.

This event is organized by a committee led by Cinders Vale and formed by the Cancer Survivors and Cancer Caregivers groups together with the FACES Creative Team. It will feature designs by a host of talented designers who have kindly agreed to donate items.

'Makeover Magic' is the Second Life equivalent of a real life program, 'Look Good...Feel Better' - a free, community-based service run by the American Cancer Society that helps cancer survivors to restore their appearance and self-image during treatment.

National Cancer Survivors Day is celebrated in hundreds of communities in more than 15 countries around the world and is supported by the American Cancer Society. Come and help us celebrate survivorship and admire the makeovers!

Oh, and the SLurl:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/American%20Cancer%20Society/147/140/51/

Playing The 1st Question

2009-06-03T10:52:00.000-07:00

Three Relay For Life team captains were among the four contestants in The 1st Question on Tuesday. I couldn't be there myself because of the timing but I watched it later on line.

Aryon Dagger is a breast cancer survivor who has been featured before in these pages when she took part in the Makeover Magic program last year. She's a consultant for this year's program and talked about the fashion show which is taking place on Sunday.

The other contestants were Jasmine Night and Katina Magic who are both team captains, and Franja Russell who runs the SciFi and Fantasy portal and was last week's winner.

Pooky Amsterdam and Hydra Shaftoe host this weekly fun quiz on SLTV, and there were plenty of plugs for Makeover Magic and for Relay For Life.

First up, each contestant was asked to define which element defines them best. Aryon and Jasmine both chose mercury, which Aryon chose because it is 'liquid, smooth, and mixes well with other elements'. Katina and Franja chose oxygen and cobalt respectively.

It was a closely run contest between the two 'mercurial avatars' but Aryon slid in front at the end. Woot Aryon!

Watch it here on:

http://archive.treet.tv/1st-question-02jun09

UPDATED Friday, June 5 - Aryon has blogged about her experience here:

http://christhebutch.wordpress.com/2009/06/04/the-1st-question-show-in-second-life/#more-774

I painted my house purple ...

2009-06-03T09:37:00.000-07:00

After brainstorming with some Relay For Life volunteers, RFL of SL event chair Fayandria Foley came up with the idea of showing our hope by turning our land, our clothes, everything we could think of, purple on a chosen day. So, Monday, June 1 we turned SL purple.

Poppy's Place

I painted my house and died my hair in the cause.

For more images see the Daily SL News blog:

http://15timez.blogspot.com/2009/06/well-sl-showed-us-all-their-hope.html

Mixed reality conference on impact of virtual worlds in public health

2009-05-30T16:25:00.000-07:00

I was honored to be one of the speakers recently at a mixed reality all-day Health Expo to celebrate the launch of the Health Commons. It was organized by the Non-Profit Commons, an online community initiative of Techsoup Global, and part of the NetSquared Conference in San Jose, CA.

The expo consisted of a number of panels, with the aim according to the organizers of 'bringing together healthcare leaders and practitioners to share best practices and develop new strategies for incorporating technology to address the need to organize and disseminate health-related information and to connect with other nonprofit health organizations to promote the advancement of innovative projects, cures, research and advocacy'.

Left to right: Poppy, Sting and Fay

Stingray9798 Raymaker, the ACS representative in Second Life; Fayandria Foley, Event Chair of Relay For Life of Second Life; and I were on a panel to discuss the ways in which the cancer support community, the cancer treatment community and the cancer research community can meet together and share ideas and support, through the various inworld support networks in the virtual world of Second Life. We also explored the fundraising success of Relay For Life.

There were five panels in total and the other four panels consisted of: mental health issues (Coughran Mayo), HIV/AIDS awareness (Ricken Flow), healthy lifestyles (Rebecca E. Lee & Sameer Siddiqi, Texas Obesity Research Center), and disabilities (Gentle Heron of Virtual Ability).

Fimi we love you and remember you

2009-05-23T06:07:00.000-07:00

Remember Artistic Fimicoloud, the feisty little pink fox? It is a year ago since she passed, but she touched so many people in SL that I know she will always be remembered.

Fimi's team, the Passionate Redheads, celebrated her life a few days ago with a party at the Park Galleries. See:

http://passionateredheads.blogspot.com/2009/05/we-miss-you-fimi.html

ACS unfolds plans to expand its support programs in SL

2009-01-31T06:55:00.000-08:00

Stingray9798 Raymaker (the American Cancer Society representative in SL) is the first to acknowledge that he is a "noob", who once managed to delete an entire building. (You're not the only one, Sting. I managed to delete my house!) But his vision of how ACS will evolve in the future is far from rudimentary.

Speaking at Nonprofit Week last Thursday, Sting used the opportunity to unfold ACS plans to expand its support group program in SL to match its RL programs, as well as offering help and advice to other nonprofits.

He first outlined the current programs on the American Cancer Society sim, including The Hope Haven which he described as "the cornerstone of how the ACS provides much needed support for cancer survivors who live in Second Life", the "Makeover Magic" program which is scheduled to happen twice in 2009, and a breast cancer education and awareness program based on the real life Making Strides Against Breast Cancer program.

New projects include the Media Library, where avatars can browse resources of information, and a new series of lectures on cancer information organized by Ren Stonecutter, a RL physician who is already a popular speaker on the island.

Forthcoming plans include a support group (Man to Man) for men only, and another program, Reach to Recovery, for breast cancer survivors to “mentor” newly diagnosed breast cancer patients.

Another, more aggressive plan involves access to the ACS's National Cancer Information Center. The NCIC consists of cancer specialists who currently answer all phone calls (24/7) to the ACS toll free hotline…1-800-ACS-2345. Emphasizing that this is still in the very early stages of development, Sting continued: "If this project is rolled out, we would be able to provide immediate information and resources to cancer patients and loved ones in-world just the same as we do when they call on the phone in RL. I do not mean to create an expectation that this will become available in the near future - but it is one of my pet projects that I will work diligently on because the need is so great."

In closing, Sting offered the following thoughts to nonprofits and also mentioned that ACS will in future be offering its meeting spaces to nonprofits who do not own their own sim:

"Since entering Second Life, the American Cancer Society has existed on the support of one staff person and countless volunteers. Our budget allocation is minimal, at best, and we exist primarily because of generous volunteers who donate their time and talent.

"The key to our success has always been the organization’s willingness to support and legitimize our volunteers’ efforts. It shouldn’t take a lot of money to exist in SL, if you stay true to the mission of your organization."

Orange Island and the Nonprofit Commons teamed up to present Nonprofit Week which was held from Monday, January 26th to Thursday, January 29th.

Trader cycles his socks off for cancer research

2009-01-27T05:36:00.000-08:00

Some people think about it, others talk about it, and a few go for it.

Trader1 Whiplash was one of our first Fighting Spirit speakers in Hope Haven on the American Cancer Society island in SL. As a real life leukemia survivor he is passionate about Relay for Life of Second Life and as co-owner of T1 Radio which covers the event live he is sometimes known as the 'Voice of Relay". This year he is taking on the in-world challenge of Mission Integrity Chair for RFL of SL 2009. And in real life, he is taking on another challenge ...

In June, Trader is going to be cycling his socks off when he hopes to take part in the America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride - Lake Tahoe - as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Team In Training. The aim is to raise funds to help stop blood cancers from taking more lives.

If you would like to support him or just take a peek see:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/snj/ambbr09/emcfadden

WTG Trader!

SL volunteers have their say on healthcare!

2009-01-10T12:14:00.000-08:00

Draxtor Despres has captured the SL community discussion on healthcare reform needs in this machinisma which is now on Utube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YghepF0uv3E

One of the people interviewed was cancer survivor Hylonome Quintessa - WTG Hy! For her full report see: http://poppyzabelin.blogspot.com/2009/01/reforming-health-sl-community-has-its.html

Siri Vita who organised the discussion also spoke persuasively about the advantages of holding such a meeting in SL where people who cannot easily get out and join in real life neighbourhood discussions (and who are often those most impacted) can have their say.

Reforming health - the SL community has its say

2009-01-03T15:15:00.000-08:00

Hylonome Quintessa, a breast cancer survivor and member of SL Cancer Survivors Group, attended a meeting of representatives of health and support organizations in Second Life to discuss health care reform in the United States, and has sent in this report.

The Obama/Biden Health Care Policy transition team has called for Americans everywhere to gather and speak their minds about how best we can fix our broken health care system in the United States. Residents of Second Life were no exception.

Despite terrible glitches on SL, many attended an event on Monday December 29 at The Cafe in Port Spinoza, representing many concerned groups involved in health support and information in SL. Members of SL's Justice League appeared in their capes to make sure only those with invitations entered, but in the end they themselves commented as well. Siri Vita expertly moderated the event.

The goal of the discussion was to draft a response to specific questions about how policy changes could bring about health care reforms. The attendees were asked to give input on the following questions and also filled in a notecard with their responses at the end of the meeting.

1) What do you perceive is the biggest problem in the health system?

2) What do you think is the best way for policy makers to develop a plan to address the health care system problems?

3) After this discussion, what additional input and information would best help you to continue to participate in this great debate?

The event was filmed by Draxtor Despres who is making a documentary which will be submitted to President-Elect Obama's health policy team.

A further meeting to discuss the responses will be held in January.

Hylonome Quintessa

To read further about the Obama-Biden plan see:
http://change.gov/agenda/health_care_agenda/

New schedule for cancer caregivers meetings

2009-01-03T04:45:00.000-08:00

Willow Lundquist has announced that the caregivers support group will meet twice weekly going forward, Sundays at 10 am SLT and Wednesdays at 7 pm SLT. The meetings will alternate between Hope Haven and Willow's place. Please contact Willow if you would like to learn more.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T04:31:00.000-08:00

A HAPPY AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR to ALL of us in 2009 and may at least one of (y)our dreams come true.

Groovy Winkler will be starting off our 2009 'Fighting Spirit' talks on Sunday January 4 when he will be speaking about his personal cancer journey fighting a rare disease called pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP) that affects only one in a million people. We'll be meeting as usual in Hope Haven on the American Cancer Society island at 12 noon SLT.

Top of the Lindens!

2008-12-30T09:46:00.000-08:00

M Linden in his end of year address mentioned two important cancer events on his list of favorite things in SL. Top of a randomized list was our very own much-loved Relay for Life of Second Life which raised over 200,000 real US dollars this year, with the virtual breast cancer conference held in Modena last month listed third. In the words of Fayandria Foley, Event Chair for RFL of SL in 2007, 2008 and looking forward, in 2009 - "WHAT A GREAT WAY TO END 2008 and START 2009!'

See:

http://blog.secondlife.com/2008/12/29/a-look-back-a-look-ahead/

And a Happy New Year to y'all too!

Men can get breast cancer too!

2008-12-14T14:10:00.000-08:00

Although it is 100 times more common in women, there are 1990 new male breast cancers diagnosed in the USA alone each year and male breast cancer accounts for approximately 450 deaths per year in the USA - said Dr Ren Stonecutter, speaking at the American Cancer Society in Second Life today. Male breast cancer is on the increase and has grown by around 26% in the past 25 years, he said. And unfortunately it is often only detected after it has reached an advanced stage.

There are a number of factors which put men at increased risk, said Dr Stonecutter, including Jewish ancestry, previous (benign) breast disease, gynecomastia (enlarged breasts), hormonal imbalances, alcohol, celibacy, and a history of liver or testicular disease. He recommended that men protect their 'family jewels' when playing sports or other dangerous activities as injury is another risk factor. And he pointed out that genetic factors are also important - men with a positive family history of breast cancer have an increased risk of 15-20%.

He recommended that men at increased risk should check their breasts regularly or have their significant others do it for them, just like their sisters and mothers, and that men diagnosed with male breast cancer should have genetic testing and counseling for their family members. But all men who find a lump should take note, he said, as the majority of men who are diagnosed have no identifiable risk factors.

Male breast cancer usually presents itself as a small, painless mass just under the areola (the brown area around the nipple), he said. The first step on finding a lump is to get a mammogram. And "when in doubt, TAKE IT OUT!". Male breast cancer is so rare that many local community oncologists will see only one or two cases in their entire careers, so he recommended that men with advanced breast cancer should go for treatment to the big cancer centers or universities, such as Memorial Sloan Kettering, or the National Cancer Institute.

Dr Stonecutter is a regular speaker in Second Life and a real life family physician.

A Celebration of Life

2008-12-14T08:29:00.000-08:00

Yesterday LadyKay Gable was the gracious hostess at an awesome party at the Tiki Lounge. The reason? She has been cancer-free for ten years and wanted us to join her in a Celebration of Life.

As you can see from this picture, many of Kay's fellow survivors who have walked this journey turned out to celebrate with her, along with members of the ACS and Relay for Life community.

There was an evening of live music, including Kay's RL daughter Kim Seifert (pictured above)who is one of the most popular live singers in SL.

Although Kay has announced her intention to close the Tiki Lounge she still plans to be an active and involved member of the Cancer Survivors group at Hope Haven and of Relay for Life.

Breaking the ice

2008-11-23T11:08:00.000-08:00

What better way to break the ice than by holding an icebreaker?

Willow Lundquist, new Cancer Caregivers chair, held a party on the ice for the caregivers in celebration of the fact that this is National Caregivers Month in the USA, and invited the survivors group to join in.

Willow Lundquist, the new Caregivers Chair

The party was held at Stormy Dragon which is run by Stormy and Dragonlord Moonlight. As you can see, we all skated brilliantly - thanks to their trick skating pose.

Stormy Moonlight atop the beautiful ice carousel

Poppy (L) and Cinders (R) dressed up to keep the winter winds away

There is much more to see on Stormy Dragon and it is one of the most tranquil spots in SL. Stormy has very kindly invited the caregivers and survivors to visit her land at any time.

Experience the London Oncology Clinic ... virtually

2008-11-21T03:59:00.000-08:00

I was 14 when I was referred to a consultant physician in Harley Street, London, to look at some strange lumps in my neck. A visit that led to a diagnosis of thyroid cancer and many, many more visits to see the same doctor, stretching over the next ten years.

So it was with some trepidation that I stood on the steps of the London Oncology Clinic in Second Life, because it, too, is in Harley Street. The green door somehow looked SO familiar ...

I pulled myself together, went inside and saw that the waiting room was on the other side of the corridor from 'my' consultant's practice, and the decor was different, and somehow that was a relief. I went in and sat down, glancing - as I remember doing all those years ago - at the magazines on the table, and immediately heard my mother's voice echoing in my head, saying 'young women don't cross their legs like that!'

The other avatars in the room were not very communicative so I went exploring further.

I smiled at the fact that although the Clinic is in London, the floors are numbered American-style.

Up the stairs, to the 'second' floor, and ... oh boy, turned left straight into 'my' consultant's room. I sat down on the same chair that I remember sitting on so often. Glanced over to the modesty screen in the corner with the examination couch behind it. I remembered my consultant telling me after several visits that he thought he had been mistaken in his initial diagnosis and so he was referring me to an endocrine surgeon at the nearby Middlesex Hospital. And how I felt a strange relief, that he was taking my symptoms seriously, and something was at last going to be done.

Down the stairs again (am I the only one who dislikes elevators in SL?) into the basement and the treatment center. I said 'hi' to the receptionist, Eliza, who wasn't very communicative, either, and walked through to the cubicles where several patients were having treatment.

I noticed that one of the patients, Dexter, was using his laptop. Others were reading, or chatting with the nursing staff. It was all pretty laid back.

By this time I was feeling quite at home so I tried sitting in one of the treatment chairs.

In real life, the London Oncology Clinic is a private clinic that was set up in 2005 and offers a high level of cancer treatment by over 20 top oncologists, many of them internationally renowned, and most of whom practice or have practiced in the National Health Service in and around London. This representation is designed to help patients and/or their carers to get to know the clinic before attending and to help reduce the stress of the experience.

This is a great initiative, although I could think of some tweaks that would make it work still better, such as, making better use of the robot avatars to explain what is happening, and notegivers to explain the purpose of each area or a running commentary on the audio stream.

To tour the LOC go to:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Cancer%20Innovation/136/63/28/

Virtual peer support

2008-11-20T07:13:00.000-08:00

Now that I've finally started to master Flickr I've uploaded a shortened version of the slides I presented at the Second Life Community Convention in September on "Virtual Peer Support for Cancer Survivors in Second Life":

http://flickr.com/photos/poppy_zabelin/sets/72157609544904116/

Virtual worlds for healthcare information

2008-11-16T00:45:00.000-08:00

The Fall meeting of the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) featured a panel on virtual worlds as a healthcare information platform, which was held in world in the conference center on the Center for Connected Health island. I couldn't attend even virtually because I was on holiday, but it looks like an interesting program, and although not cancer-related it is yet more confirmation of the potential that people see for delivering health information and education via virtual platforms such as SL. See:

http://daneelariantho.wordpress.com/2008/11/06/a-virtual-world-as-a-healthcare-information-platform/

And here is Namro Orman's photographic record of the session:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=178927&id=80079725553#/album.php?aid=178927&id=80079725553

"Meet the professors" in Second Life

2008-11-05T11:20:00.000-08:00

Gabriel Hortobagyi, Chairman of the Department of Breast Medical Oncology at the M.D. Anderson Hospital in Houston, TX and Pier Franco Conte, Director of the Department of Oncology and Haematology at the University of Modena, Italy, are the joint directors of the Advanced Course on Breast Cancer being held this week in Modena. As DrHortobagyi Bravin and PierfrancoConte Blinker they came in world and answered questions put to them by avatar physicians, the press, and other interested people at an open Q&A session at the Virtual Cancer Institute.

Professors Hortobagyi and Conte answering questions over a live video stream put to them by physicians and others attending the conference at the Virtual Cancer Institute.

The professors, who answered questions live from Modena, were enthusiastic about the potential of holding conferences in Second Life and for people to 'attend' from different countries without having to travel. Italian physicians are able to get Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits for attending the course in Modena. Although virtual attendance does not, yet, qualify for CME credits, they foresee that this is a real possibility in the future once the practical issues are overcome.

M Linden addresses the inworld conference

Later, M Linden (Mark Kingsdon , CEO of Linden Labs) addressed the conference. He spoke enthusiastically about the important work this group is doing and about the increasing use that is being made of Second Life by health care providers and educators.

This was a good example of how virtual medical conferences can work. I've attended many real life medical conferences in my previous role as a scientific and medical publisher and the experience was very similar, except that this time, I could type my questions in the 'chat' box from the comfort of sitting at my own computer, or take a discreet break and refresh my coffee when I felt like it. And of course it saves on travel and accommodation! The one drawback is that you can't meet your colleagues face to face during the breaks, but you can always IM the other delegates and make new contacts that way.

The conference still has two days to run. For more information and a link to the detailed program, see my earlier blog piece: http://poppyzabelin.blogspot.com/2008/11/virtual-breast-cancer-conference-in.html

Virtual breast cancer conference in Italy

2008-11-05T04:56:00.000-08:00

In an exciting development, the Policlinic of the University of Modena is hosting a real life three-day "Meet the Professor" advanced course on breast cancer which is also being streamed into Second Life.

SL residents can follow the conference in real time at the Virtual Cancer Institute on the ISN Visions sim today, Thursday and Friday from Midnight to 10.30 am SLT.

The Virtual Cancer Institute in Second Life

I sat in on some of the first sessions and was impressed to find that the program features some heavyweight names, including experts from the United States, United Kingdom and Switzerland.

Professor Luca Gianni

Professor Luca Gianni (Head of the Medical Oncology A Division of the Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy) was one of the speakers. He spoke live from Modena about gene profiling of breast cancer to a mixed live and virtual audience.

Most of the program is targeted in the first place at physicians (oncologists, radiologists and surgeons) but there is a Q&A session today at 9 am SLT (18.00 local Italian time) that should be of interest to other health professionals and to anyone whose life has been touched by cancer. ISN Visions has also announced that M Linden - Mark Kingdon, CEO of Linden Lab - will be joining the guests later today, at 10.30 am SLT (19.30 local Italian time). It is being held at the Virtual Cancer Institute (Teleport:http://slurl.com/secondlife/ISN%20VISIONS/194/106/34).

Hyoozan Hax, the Virtual Activities Manager in SL for ISN, told me that this is the second virtual cancer conference that the island has hosted, but this is the first time that it has been held in English.

The full program can be downloaded at:

http://isnvirtualworlds.com/VirtualCancerInstitute/download/program.pdf

Looking good helps you to feel better

2008-11-04T05:29:00.000-08:00

Aryon Dagger was one of the survivors who was given a totally new look as part of the Makeover Magic program. She has blogged her experiences on -

http://christhebutch.wordpress.com/2008/11/04/a-new-life-and-a-new-look/#more-387.

Her story reminded me of a time, long ago, when I had a recurrence of thyroid cancer. I came out of hospital with an embarrassing large red scar across my neck. Without my asking, a friend scooped me up and took me shopping. We found some pretty, high-neck blouses. Her gesture helped me hold my head up and look life in the face as I went through the next stages of treatment and waited anxiously to hear if it had spread. The scar has faded, and I'm disease-free, and my friend has moved on. But her action touched me deeply and the memory will always stay with me.

I love your new look Aryon, but above all I love you as a person. Thankyou for reminding us that it is not the new look alone, it's the friendship, the listening, the understanding, and above all the acceptance that counts. That helps us to feel better about ourselves.

And that's what the American Cancer Society's real life program - Look Good, Feel Better - is about too. For more information about this program see:

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ESN/content/ESN_3_1X_Look_Good_Feel_Better.asp?sitearea=SHR.

Applause for our designers

2008-11-04T05:01:00.000-08:00

"Makeover Magic" would not have been possible without the generous contributions of our designers ---

Minnu Palen & Thora Charon - MM Skins
Hair & CachetMaddox Dupont - KMADD City & MADesigns Shapes
Nicky Ree - Designing Nicky Ree
Rosemary Galbraith - M&R CUPCAKES
Mavis McGettigan - Skin Flicks
Blaze Columbia - Blaze*
Torrid Midnight - TorridWear
Fallingwater Cellardoor - ShinyThings
Machang Pichot - AOHARU
Onyx LeShelle - Maitreya
Annyka Bekkers - Blowpop
LeeZu Baxter - LeeZu Baxter Designs
Lion Jonesford - Lion Skins
Barbara Nicholls & GM Nikolaidis - Spork
CheerNo Destiny - a.C Store
Scar Ayres - A. D. Studios

All of the designs were great, but I want to make special mention of Lion Jonesford. One of the fashion mentors passed along the information that this event was special to Lion because she lost her real life sister recently to cancer. Her Suzana skin is designed in her sister's memory. Lion, we appreciate what you do for us, and understand your pain. You are our hero.

Grand Makeover for ACS in Second Life

2008-11-03T12:42:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, November 2 the American Cancer Society sim was officially reopened. Over the last several months, the island has been completely 'made over' to meet the growing needs of cancer patients and American Cancer Society volunteers in Second Life. The island rebuild was in the hands of Boro Rossini and Mirco Dinzeo who have done an amazing job of interpreting these needs.

As Jeff Montegut, who as Stingray9798 Raymaker is the ACS Strategic Director in Second Life, said: "The American Cancer Society plans to utilize the virtual office no differently (in concept) than any other office in any other city... the same services that are offered in a real life office should be available to the Second Life community, because there are real people facing real issues behind each and every avatar. The American Cancer Society recognizes that, and fully supports our volunteers in Second Life."

There was a festive atmosphere, with quirky Japanese-style lanterns lining the canal and the paths that people could light to honor a loved one who is facing cancer or who has passed on. And, importantly, the Tree of Hope and the Survivors Wall (this time, redesigned as a 'Walk') returned to the island!

Lanterns line the pathways and the Tree of Hope can be seen in the distance

Volunteer greeters were situated around the island to give tours and to explain the various activities that take place there.

Then we moved on to another kind of 'makeover'. Five survivors were nominated for an avatar fashion makeover, see: http://poppyzabelin.blogspot.com/2008/10/makeover-magic.html. Trader1 Whiplash hosted a panel discussion on T1 Radio with the chosen survivors, who modelled their outfits later in the morning in the fashion show "Makeover Magic", along with their fashion mentors. The makeover program was sponsored by FACES, led by Aradia Dielli and Serenity Nerd, and with Cinders Vale responsible for the liaison between the survivors and the FACES team. The program was supported by a host of top flight designers who donated skins, outfits, hair, shoes, and jewelry for the makeovers.

Evus Alter, who was one of the survivor models, sent this note to the Makeover Magic team after the event: "To everyone who organized the event: You have no idea have much respect I have for each of you. All the talent, time, effort that you placed into it! Thank you. To my mentor, Scar, what a wonderful human being! To have someone, half way across the world, doing something so nice for a total stranger – truly touched me. To all my fellow survivors: I am so honored to have this connection to you."

For a list of the designers who took part see my next blog:

http://poppyzabelin.blogspot.com/2008/11/applause-for-our-designers.html

The ceremony finished with a wonderful firework display courtesy of Racerx Gullwing.

Jeff Montegut (Stingray 9798 Raymaker) Strategic Director of ACS in Second Life, addresses the audience and describes the new plans that ACS has for increasing access in SL to its RL support services

LadyKay Gable sets out down the catwalk and shows off her beautiful new look

Cinders Vale, a volunteer with ACS who coordinated the makeovers, relaxing after the show with one of the survivor models, Hylonome Quintessa

New group leader for Cancer Caregivers group

2008-10-23T15:26:00.000-07:00

Willow Lundquist has stepped up to take over from Marissa Goodliffe as group leader of our sister organization SL Cancer Caregivers. Here's what Willow says about herself in her introduction:

"As for me--I am an emeritus caregiver---having had two in chemo simultaneously in the 90's. I have also been a therapy dog handler---you may have seen me at the last RFL---I was the boxer. Feel free to IM me if you need to talk and I am online., please."

Makeover Magic!

2008-10-18T14:55:00.000-07:00

The completely rebuilt American Cancer Society island will be officially unveiled at a Grand Re-Opening on Sunday, November 2. The event starts at 10 am SL time. Go to:

http://slurl.com/secondlife/American%20Cancer%20Society/104/147/49

The official ACS representative in Second Life, Stingray9798 Raymaker, will talk about the ACS future plans in Second Life, and the program will include a "Makeover Magic" fashion show sponsored jointly by the ACS and FACES.

Cinders Vale, the official liaison with FACES, and I, were both treated to a fashion makeover last year and we took part in the fashion show at the official opening on September 23 2007, so we know just how exciting and special it is to be pampered in this way. This year's show features five members of the Survivors Group, along with their fashion mentors, so be sure to come and support them!

The makeovers program is the Second Life equivalent of the ACS "Look Good, Feel Better" program, a free, community-based service in the USA that helps survivors to restore their appearance and self-image during treatment.

See: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ESN/content/ESN_3_1X_Look_Good_Feel_Better.asp?sitearea=SHR

See also Cinders' blog: http://www.relayforlife.org/relay/node/4280

Below, the spectacular invitation (designed by MamaP Beerbaum) and an aerial view of the new island.

Aryon does battle with breast cancer

2008-10-14T05:43:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, October 12 Aryon Dagger led a session on how she has fought her breast cancer. The session was organized by Making Strides in Second Life as part of its program to raise awareness for breast cancer in the month of October, and it brought an audience of nearly 30 people to Hope Haven.

I wasn't able to be at this session myself but I heard from some of the people who attended that it was a truly inspirational story, and Aryon shared her talk with me.

She was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer in 2001. The advice: a double, radical, bilateral mastectomy. "I sat there and went numb, became a robot of sorts in my responses, got up and walked out ... I phoned the one person in my life that I needed most right then ... my wife. My life flashed in slow motion before my eyes but it wasn't over yet."

Aryon made the choice to fight. To "... stand toe to toe with it, stare it in the eye and tell it where to go ... I wanted to see my son happy, to hold my first grandchild, to spend time with the woman I loved enough to leave my life as I knew it behind and move to a place I had never been to before."

Aryon's partner loved and cared for her, but she couldn't face the scars and Aryon never knew why. She passed away several years later. "My wife never got to hear the "all clear" given to me. But I fight on, to repay the debt I incurred by bargaining. I fight on by trying to make women AND men aware of this tragic killer that if caught early enough, can be treated."

She came into Second Life to heal from the loss of her wife of 26 years, and from the immense trauma of fighting the breast cancer. It was several years before someone other than a doctor, nurse or Aryon herself actually touched her scars. Not only touched them but looked at them, and said the words that she had said many times before, without having seen them … “it doesn’t matter”.

Aryon considers herself to be one of the lucky ones. "I don’t know why one person wins their battle and another loses it. But I do know that everything happens for a reason ..." So now she shares her story, in the hope that by making people aware, she is serving a purpose. And she now takes pride in her scars and campaigns through her blog for lesbian women to 'get to grips with their nips" because, as she writes there, "... lesbian women are almost twice as likely to suffer from breast cancer than women generally". See: http://christhebutch.wordpress.com/2008

She concluded her talk: "If through my survival, through my standing here and speaking to you all today, through my fundraising in the name of breast cancer awareness and research ... I can save one life ... by making someone aware of regular self examinations, of regular mammograms ... then I will be happy but not fulfilled. We MUST find a cure. So, I will continue to battle, wearing my scars like a medal won in a war, for life ... mine and everyone elses."

Teleport raises awareness for breast cancer

2008-10-12T12:53:00.000-07:00

The new Teleport magazine owned by Terrell Merryman and edited by Moonshade Pastorelli decided to feature breast cancer in its October issue.

Moonshade was moved to devote her Editorial to breast cancer because her mother is a BC survivor of 18 years. Quoting from the American Cancer Society's website, she writes: "An estimated 182,460 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to occur in women during 2008; about 1,990 cases are expected in men." She refers readers to Tam Hyun's notecard display on breast self-examination to be found on HealthInfo Island.

Moonshade concludes her article with the words: "Let's all be aware in October and year-round, so we can then celebrate the increasing numbers of breast cancer survivors."

The magazine also includes a contribution from me on "Artistic Fimicoloud - An Inspiration to Breast Cancer Survivors" and three pages of pictures taken on the ACS island and at Fimi's gallery.

Thanks Terrell and Moonshade for raising awareness for this important issue.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

2008-10-01T05:08:00.000-07:00

Synergy Devonshire --- the SL coordinator of Making Strides, the ACS breast cancer awareness program --- is organizing the Fighting Spirit sessions this month, on the theme of breast cancer awareness, and she is also organizing several awareness talks on ACS island, dates and times to be announced. If you go to the island you'll see the "Strides" donation kiosks at the information centers on both levels, along with some goody bags and a perfectly wonderful pink pumpkin which you can grab for free!

Also on this theme, Vera Zhaoying who is a student intern at the Anne Myers Medical Center (AMMC) is organizing a breast cancer awareness event called "Time for You" on October 11 at 10 AM. It is at the woman health clinic, AMMC. Please contact Vera for details.

Never give in, never, Never, NEVER

2008-09-30T13:25:00.000-07:00

Suzetta Moonites kicked off the new "Fighting Spirit" series of meetings organized by SL's Cancer Survivors Group in Hope Haven on Sunday September 28 by describing her personal experience of childhood leukemia. How she fought it then. And about how she is still fighting, by advocating for improved follow-up of children who were treated with radiation.

Suzetta speaking to a full house in Hope Haven on the American Cancer Society island. She is standing next to a statue aptly named "The Survivor"

Her story began when she was 8 years old. Her teacher (Mrs. T) noticed that she was unable to make it upstairs without being severely out of breath. She told Suzette's parents what she had noticed. The day after that, she went to see her pediatrician. During his examination Dr. P noticed that that her lymph nodes were swollen in the groin, under the arms and behind the ears. She was in the hospital in New York the next day - after a few more routine tests the doctors there confirmed a diagnosis of childhood leukemia. Her doctor explained that there are three types of leukemia - the very bad, the middle kind that goes away but sometimes comes back - and the good kind. She had the 'good' kind.

She had chemo for four years and was also placed in a nationwide childhood cancer study. They formed two groups based on the trial that included those who would have the radiation and those that would not. Suzette was placed in the group that was given the radiation.

Suzette believes she was spared the worst side effects of the chemo because although her doctors and family explained what was happening, they didn't tell her she could get sick. So, she didn't!

"I remember mom telling me that I had too much soda and thats why my tummy hurt. I can still see her rubbing my stomach saying let's go to our special beach place and dance. I never knew it was from the chemo ... that year I learned that Love and Laughter were the best medicine." Her doctor asked her because of her "spirit" to talk with other children in the hospital. So they could see how she looked and "my theory that I had cancer but cancer doesn't have me". After four years she was declared cancer free!

But that wasn't the end. When she was 25 her doctors found a meningioma (brain tumor) which was found to be wrapped around her brain stem. That was when her specialist Dr S told her that this was found to happen to 1% of childhood leukemia patients. It was a traumatic discovery. However, she was more shocked by the fact that her doctor knew and didn't warn her what to look for. She changed doctors and had surgery three weeks later.

"Was I mad - yes but not at the cancer, and not at the tumor. I was angry that I wasn't told what could happen. I was angry that when I complained for the past years of headaches I wasn't warned."

The surgery went pretty well. But later on she had a recurrence.

"I find as an adult you want more information about what's happening to you. I can tell you that the first surgery went really well because I didn't have time to find out. The second one although I wore a smile, I was scared because I went to the library ... As an adult sometimes knowledge can scare you to death. However, my family and friends told me to fight and not give up because I never have before."

The surgery and radiation went well although the tumor couldn't be removed completely. She didn't let anything keep her down, even knowing that she was going to have to live with this in her head. She now lives a "watch and see kinda game".

She was still angry about not being warned. So she decided to get the word out, writing to the newspapers to let people know what could happen, the signs to look for. She wanted to share her theory for recovery with others and raise awareness and funds to help as well. She contacted the American Cancer Society and they told her about an event for the community called Relay for Life. She started a small group of 11 people and they travelled to participate and that event raised $25,000. This year will be her 12th year with Relay for Life. Her hometown is the host of the event, last year they raised over $120,000 and saw 2 other Relay events split off from us that raised well over $100,000 each.

Suzetta says she was especially inspired by a Relay video that she first saw where a teenage girl said that it isn't just about recovery or the battle with cancer ... "it's also for your spirit to know that no matter what, we should "Never Give In..... never, Never, NEVER!"

RFL of SL 2008 Survivorship Awards

2008-08-27T11:07:00.000-07:00

At the Wrap Up party for RFLof SL 2008, I announced two Survivorship Awards.

It was hard, very hard, to single someone out. Each and every one of our Survivors Group as well as all our unnamed survivors deserves an award for the way they deal with their cancer. But I reviewed the names with Marissa Goodliffe, who runs the Caregivers Group, and we came up with two names. Two very special people who each in their own way are an example to us all.

We decided on giving the awards to LadyKay Gable and (posthumously) to Artistic (Fimi) Fimicoloud.

As many of their friends were unable to attend the wrap-up party, we held a separate party on Sunday, August 24, in the new Hope Haven on the new American Cancer Society island.

LadyKay Gable, or Kay as she likes to be known (above left) is a very special lady. A long term breast cancer survivor who is a regular and caring participant in our peer support meetings, she is devoted to Relay For Life, and above all a team player.

When Marissa and I were up to our ears in the preparations for the survivors and caregivers art auction for the halfway there fair, she stepped up to help, as she has helped in countless other ways throughout this past year. She has, quite simply, a heart of gold.

Artistic (Fimi) Fimicoloud was not able to Relay with us this year because she is sadly no longer here. But so many of us relayed for her and she has touched and inspired so many people both in first life and second life that we wanted to make this award posthumously. And I am delighted that so many of Fimi's friends (pictured above) from the Park Gallery, the Passionate Redheads, and the Sunweaver Islanders were able to join us for the presentation.

Fimi, as she liked to be known, had advanced metastatic breast cancer. She knew that she would have a tough battle. And she chose to fight it with her paintbrush and crayons. Her painting kept her from spending every moment wondering if her disease has spread to this part or that. Instead, her mind was filled with thoughts on how to portray the nature she so loved.

Although I am quite sure that Fimi knew she was dying, she was able to set it to one side and focus on her art and her family and friends to the last. She taught us quite simply ...

... how to live.

After celebrating we visited the new 'heroes gallery' memorial on the ACS island, where Fimi's friends paused at the memorial to Fimi and placed the award by her picture.

The long path of support

2008-08-15T06:41:00.000-07:00

The July 2008 issue of Percussion magazine carried an article about support groups in SL. Freyaschild Lovencraft admits that when she first joined SL she saw it as many do as a game, a fun place to visit, but "... then I began to discover it was so much more than that, especially for those suffering from a wide variety of illnesses and disabilities."

Freya set out on a journey around Second Life. She first visited Synergy Devonshire and myself in Hope Haven where we talked about the activities of the Cancer Survivors Group. She went on to visit the Heron Sanctuary, where she interviewed Gentle Heron and Pecos Kidd; Healing Hands, which is headed by Kaznats Oh, where people in the last stages of their life can spend time with friends and family without the restriction of their hospital beds; and Ouchies!! - a support group for and by people suffering chronic pain, led by Gemini Glitter.

Freya concludes: " What strikes me the most about all of these groups is how positive the environment they provide feels. I can certainly see how one could benefit in many ways by being in the presence of others with such passion and impetus for their cause. Of course I was only able to touch on a handful of groups on my short tour, but lucky for us, and others we know, the path of support us much much longer."

I learned a lot from the article, including the fact that our groups have much in common in the way we reach out and provide both informational and emotional support. And I'm sure we can continue to learn from each other. Thanks, Freya, for drawing attention to this important way in which Second Life can make a difference!

A picture is worth a thousand words

2008-08-01T08:47:00.000-07:00

For the curious coming across this blog, who haven't experienced Relay for Life of Second Life, this picture says it all. It shows Dwen Dooley, an avatar member of the Relay Rockers RFL of SL team and cancer survivor, next to a picture of Dwen snapped at his real life Relay for Life. Verrrry coooool.

Thanks Dwen for sharing. (And I like the cap!) And here's a link to Dwen's blog on the Relay for Life website (you will need to register if you haven't done so already).

http://www.relayforlife.org/relay/node/4234

We relayed until our hair fell out ...

2008-07-26T08:55:00.000-07:00

Well, my avatar's feet are soaking in a bowl of virtual water and I need bandages on my typing fingers. It's amazing, we raised over $200,000 real US dollars. Fay (Fayandria Foley, our Event Chair) challenged all of the RFL of SL Planning Committee to go bald for a month if we raised $200K. And we did. Here's the proof ... (I seem to be brandishing a pair of giant scissors ...) I am so proud of being part of the team that made this possible.

The survivor and caregiver lap

2008-07-20T07:33:00.000-07:00

All of the months of organization paid off and we finally set out from ten different starting points on the Relay for Life of Second Life survivor and caregiver lap. We had more than 130 avatars registered beforehand, and although some couldn't make it, we had an estimated 120 pink and purple shirts on the lap at one time.

My camera controls froze so I couldn't take pictures of the lap itself, but here are the pictures of the survivor camp and starting points.

The survivor campsite, designed by Stella Costello

This was one of the nine survivor starting points around the 35 sims with those amazing survivor cherry trees in the background.

Flash and Poppy get ready for the opening lap

Cinders gets her skates on ...

Above two pics show some of the 80 survivor pictures lining the walk

Gone, but not forgotten ... these luminaria pay tribute to our survivor heroes, many of whom walked the Survivors Lap with us last year.

H is for Heroes ... and for HOPE

2008-07-19T05:31:00.000-07:00

We're off! Just take a look at this ... all of those green dots are avatars walking for cancer ... for Relay for Life. Covering 35 sims! The 'H' is for Heroes, the theme of this year's Relay for Life of Second Life. And it stands for HOPE, too.

For more information see: http://www.rflofsl.org/

Only two days to go ...

2008-07-17T06:01:00.000-07:00

With only TWO days to go until the start of Relay for Life of Second Life, the Survivors / Caregivers Committee members have been burning lots of candles at both ends to get our part ready in time.

The survivors and caregivers are honored to walk the opening lap, which starts at 11 am SL time on Saturday.

Pre-registration closes today and Dwen Dooley, who has set up an awesome registration form on the web, emailed me yesterday to say we have 119 avatars signed up. That's already around twice the number who took part last year, and we're expecting more to register today, so we're very very relieved that we now have eight starting points and can avoid lag as far as possible.

This year we also have a team of greeters, coordinated by HollyJean Allen, who will answer questions, give out T-shirts, and generally help everyone to have a memorable experience.

Stella Costello has done an amazing job of designing and building us a survivors campsite, and Barnesworth Anubis has built us a walkway to display around 80 survivor pictures which were collected by Harper Montgomery. Stella and Barnes are two great designers who know how to combine bold lines and simple but very effective colors and I am just SO excited about it opening for the public. Come and see us there when you're in world, on the Heroes 3 sim.

Elizabeth Antonelli is responsible for collecting the music which is played on T1 Radio during the Survivors/Caregivers Lap and at other times. SL's musicians have donated 17 'Songs of Inspiration'.

Meanwhile, Marissa Goodliffe and I have been putting the finishing touches to the starting points and we're preparing a gift bag for the survivors and caregivers.

Marissa and Poppy putting out road markers by the Survivors and Caregivers camp

Getting ready for this year's Relay has already been a memorable experience. I've made so many new friends. I've laughed, and I've cried, with survivors who have contacted me in the past few weeks to ask if they can join us on the lap. I've heard so many touching stories.

Come and cheer us on, on Saturday, and don't forget to get to the sims early. The opening ceremony is at 10 am and will be streamed throughout by T1 Radio. And if you are a survivor or caregiver, contact me (survivors), Marissa Goodliffe (caregivers) or Dwen Dooley (registration) to find out how you can take part.

Why do I Relay?

2008-07-14T09:00:00.000-07:00

I was recently asked to write a short piece about "Why do I Relay" for the RFL of SL blog.

The main purpose of Relay is to raise money for cancer research, and to find a cure. But my personal reason for relaying goes beyond that, to reaching out to the many many people who hear those words 'I'm sorry, we found cancer', providing support where possible, and to making support services more visible.

Organizations such as the American Cancer Society do more than raise money for research, they fund valuable support and advocacy services such as the Cancer Survivors Network, and promote programs such as "Look Good, Feel Better" (for breast cancer survivors), "Man to Man" (for prostate cancer survivors) and the Cancer Advocacy Network.

So that's why I relay.

Here's a link to what I wrote:

http://www.rflofsl.org/?p=269

Thumb your nose at cancer

2008-06-20T07:24:00.000-07:00

StPaulsub Clio has a great money-raising idea ... it's called 'Thumb your nose at cancer' and she 's taking SL snapshots of avatars with pink noses to raise money for Relay for Life of Second Life. Here's Poppy (yes, moi) with a pink nose ...

Under the hammer - survivors and caregivers raise over $L300K!

2008-06-10T12:17:00.000-07:00

Sunday June 1 SL Cancer Survivors and SL Cancer Caregivers joined together to organize an Art Auction of works by RL and SL artists to raise money for cancer research. All proceeds went to Relay For Life of Second Life.

More than 50 awesome works by 23 artists were collected by AnnieHall Bates. A panel of judges consisting of Fayandria Foley, Tayzia Abattoir, William Richelieu and Isolde Flamand selected the works that went into a live auction at the Relay For Life Halfway There Fair, and there was a silent auction of the remaining works in the Welcome Center on the American Cancer Society island from Tuesday May 27 to Sunday June 1.

Some of the works on sale at the survivors/caregivers art auction. In the foreground, one of my favorites - "Guardian", by Random Calliope, which raised $L55,000.

The bidders gather as Chase Marellan starts off the live auction

Synergy Devonshire helped with setting out the works and LadyKay Gable jumped in along with some of her friends to set up the silent auction, which turned out to be more of a challenge than we had expected getting the auction scripts to work. Marissa Goodliffe built the auctioneer's podium and with the help of live auctioneer Chase Marellan we managed to raise over $L300,000! WOOT!

"Out of the Fog" by Artistic Fimicoloud was purchased by a consortium of members of the RFL of SL Planning Committee and raised an awesome $L45,000. The work is now on display at the ACS Welcome Center.

Artistic Fimicoloud

2008-05-26T19:03:00.000-07:00

Our dear dear friend Fimi has passed ...

While we fight away our tears, let's remember that Fimi was an inspiration, a true fighter, who touched everyone with her ability to enjoy life and have fun during these last precious years, and her work and her ideas will live on.

The following words are from her poem Arms Open Wide, which she read at the ACS dedication ceremony last year.

"For I walk hand in hand with that which life
Has dealt me, thanking the universe for every step I take.
Where once I stood in fear and terror
Of not knowing what life would bring,
Now I stand arms open wide."

Hugs
Poppy

The Sojourner is off line

2008-05-26T05:28:00.000-07:00

I have just been to light a candle for The Sojourner, who sadly passed away at the weekend.

The dictionary definition of a sojourner is "a temporary resident". Well, "Soj", as we knew her, certainly made a difference during her sojourn in Second Life. We are already making history in SL. And Soj's name deserves to be writ large in that history. Soj, who was a multiple stroke survivor, was the founder of Dreams, and organized the Dreams Community Fairs ... SL cancer survivors held a panel discussion about support groups in SL at the third Dreams Fair in April this year.

The many tributes to "Soj"

My thoughts go out to her husband and son.

Here are a few of the growing number of tributes on the web:

In memory of The Sojourner (Amalthea Blanc)http://www.flickr.com/photos/tealthea/2523597470/

The Sojourner's Last Voyage (Gwynneth Llewellyn)
http://gwynethllewelyn.net/2008/05/26/the-sojourners-last-voyage/

The Sojourner Has Died (Polysilox)
http://www.koinup.com/Polysilox/work/37328/

Tribute to Fimi

2008-05-25T13:59:00.000-07:00

I had some sad news this weekend. Artistic (Fimi) Fimicoloud - the feisty little pink fox in Second Life and the artist Stephanie Koslow in real life - is facing her last journey. Friends of Fimi have been gathering all weekend to wish her strength, to celebrate her life, and to leave tributes at her gallery in Second Life.

Readers of this blog will remember that Fimi --- a metastatic breast cancer survivor --- was one of the first speakers in our survivor-led 'Fighting Spirit" sessions on ACS island and her talk was an inspiration to us all. See: Art from the Heart . And she has also been an active member of SL's Cancer Survivors and of the Relay For Life of Second Life team Passionate Redheads.

A mutual friend, Rob Chandrayaan, has made a moving tribute to Fimi on his blog. See: Rob's Blog.

Poppy goes into a flat spin and comes last ...

2008-05-21T00:35:00.000-07:00

On Sunday May 17 I took part in my very first Great Snail Race --- proceeds to benefit Relay For Life of Second Life. The race was organized by Racerx (Bunny) Gullwing, and it was the third race this year to benefit RFL.

I was up against the 'big brass' of RFL of SL --- our Event Chair, Fayandria Foley, our Teams Chair, Tayzia Abattoir, and May Rosebud, who is heading up the new Meeters and Greeters team on ACS island. And another survivor friend, LadyKay Gable. In all, 42 snails took to the road, which crosses 42 sims!

Snails lining up for the start

Despite practicing hard and terrorizing the inhabitants of Azure, my skills are still very rudimentary. When the start gun went off I found myself going off the road and it took forever to get back on, by which time the other snails had an impressive lead.

Poppy meets King Kong

The road is full of treacherous "potholes" and at one time I fell right through a bridge, but with a little help from Fay who tp'd me back onto to the road and to Racer for redirecting me when I lost my way I managed to keep in the race.

Where did that bridge go to?

Not far from the finish line my snail went into a flat spin, and while I was sorting myself out Fay and LadyKay both finished. I walked right through the finish line without touching it, and promptly fell into another hole. While I was straightening myself out May Rosebud came up and finished, so I finally finished last! I don't have any pictures unfortunately, I was too busy trying to straighten up! But you can see the whole race, including my flat spin, on http://slcn.tv/relay-life-giant-snail-race-may.

Holding on to your dreams

2008-04-20T15:25:00.000-07:00

This weekend I chaired a panel discussion at the Dreams Community Fair about the value of support in Second Life for people with cancer in real life. With me were Chel Norfolk, Flash Alcott and Ishtar Roux, three cancer survivors in different stages of their treatment, who shared their personal stories and talked about what support means to them. And we were supported by several members of our cancer survivors group who were in the audience.

From left to right: Ish, Flash, Chel, and Poppy

All of our speakers agreed on how difficult it was to tell friends and family in RL when they were first diagnosed. And two of them have direct experience of being supported through their treatment by the friends they've made in SL, and by the support group that meets weekly in Hope Haven.

Chel, who is studying for her PhD, has only recently been diagnosed with cancer and is still discussing with her doctors what is the best course of action to take in her treatment. When she first heard the news she walked around like a zombie for the first few days. She ended up telling a friend in SL who suggested coming the cancer support meetings . At first she was very angry " ... wanting to cuss up a storm yelling at everything". But now, she says, "If it wasn’t for my friends in SL and the support group in Sl I don’t know if I would of had the strength I have to make the decisions I have made I thank everyone of them. I haven’t told many in my RL due to my need to keep my health very private. However those that do know are very supportive and I thank my lucky stars to have everyone of them."

Chel is determined to continue her schooling and to fulfil her love of travel. "I hold on to those dreams. Someone once gave me a keychain that said 'Those that dare to can make a dream come true' ... those are very strong words to me ... this is one of my strengths to look forward to my dreams."

Flash Alcott is now a regular participant in the weekly support meetings and has helped facilitate these sessions, but he describes himself as "... a very .. intensely .. private person" who found it very hard at first to share his cancer diagnosis with anyone. The first two people he told were the father of one of his daughter's schoolfriends, and the "young, hip" hospital chaplain with whom he now has coffee every couple of weeks. And the third?

"Several months ago I 'happened' upon the American Cancer Society Island. It was late one evening and I ran into something that charmed me -- little paper bags with illuminating candle inside (OK, SL versions of these things). You could dedicate a 'luminaria' to a loved one lost to cancer. Anyway, I was 'lighting' one for both my mom and dad and another avatar floated by. I told her I was touched by the simplicity and beauty of these things -- and we started talking. She was a great listener and pretty soon I was sharing - with an avatar I'd never met (and I'm not even sure if I even bothered to look at her profile) - incredibly private stuff about my health. I talked her ears off, I suspect ... but she listened. And she gave me suggestions about things to do, people to talk with. That person - you might have guessed - was Poppy ... All of which led me to a suggestion she made -- becoming involved with the ACS Second Life community. A community that has become one of my strongest sources of support."

(ahem ...)

Flash is now in the middle of his treatment and went on to say "... what I've learned from these people is that human contact is so so so terribly important. That we need to help each other."

Ishtar has now completed her cancer treatment and her prognosis is good. But she remembers that when she heard the diagnosis she felt very alone, and then realized that she had to be the one to tell the people she loved. She attributes getting through it in a large part to her mother, her dog, and her sense of humor ... she made us all laugh with her description of how she managed to tuck away her shunt in her bra ... and how she was chased out of the nuclear medicine corridor because "our giggling was disrupting things".

During the discussion that followed, The Sojourner made the interesting point that different health support groups seem to prefer different approaches. Some, like ours, benefit from having a regular meeting schedule. Others (and she gave the example of stroke survivors) tend not to want regular support, as that can remind them of what they can't control, but do want a crisis line where they can get immediate attention. As Gentle Heron added: "Some of us need routine. Some of us need help when we need it."

Ish is now a team captain for Relay For Life of Second Life. I'll let her have the last word: "Support comes in many ways but one I missed out on was the American Cancer Society and Relay For Life. In so many ways I wish I'd had my wits about me and contacted them. It would have done me so much good to meet others with cancer, and especially survivors. I'm so delighted to be involved now and help others battling cancer."

Brrrr...

2008-03-02T06:29:00.000-08:00

Sometimes Real Life outdoes Second Life ...

Cancer Research UK, the UK charity and support organization equivalent to the American Cancer Society, launched its Race For Life recently with a naked training session. Twenty-eight women bared nearly_but_not_quite_all to run in Regents Park, London.

I really am not kidding. To view the plain truth, covered only with strategically situated body paint, see:

http://www.raceforlife.org/allaboutus/officiallaunch2008/

Nudity is a great leveller. And this event must have been quite an attention-catcher, not least because it is really VERY cold in Regents Park in the winter (I should know, I used to live quite near there).

It's been rumored that CRUK may soon establish an official presence in SL, alongside the American Cancer Society and the Association for International Cancer Research. Well, CRUK certainly knows how to make an impact, so we'd all better watch out when they come on in ...

Why Fay Fights ... One Step at a Time

2008-01-01T13:23:00.000-08:00

When Fayandria Foley came to Hope Haven to lead a "Fighting Spirit" session on December 20 we had another big turnout - and not only of cancer survivors. Because Fay is not only a survivor herself, she is also Chair of SL's Relay For Life. It was a very timely session to lead in to the kick-off for SL's Relay For Life 2008. And this year's Relay is about Fighting Back.

Fay went to the doctor to check out a small "freckle". When she heard it was melanoma she thought she was going to die, that cancer was a death sentence, and that she didn't want the pain and loss of dignity that she associated with cancer. She had, she says, NO fight in her. She was ready just to sit in a chair and wait for it to happen. But she learned that while it WAS once a death sentence, medical research and technology have taken huge strides forward. Now she's optimistic. And she knows that she doesn't want to die.

Fay doesn't really consider that she herself has fighting spirit. When she was going through treatment, she was simply following a path set out by her doctors. "Right foot, left foot, right foot, take the pain, make it happen ..." But she went on to say "I'm living with cancer, facing what I have and where I'm going. I'm fighting for you, my children, your children, and when it comes down to it I suppose yes I am fighting for me. What made the difference, what got me out of my chair? It was YOU. Thank you for sharing your stories, your life, so that I had a reason to get up and keep going."

Fay's advice for someone who faces the diagnosis of cancer or indeed any catastrophic disease is " ... to look deep inside yourself and see what matters ... to me it's not the house I live in or the car I drive, it's about my friends, the ones who held me when I got my diagnosis and helped me through each step of the treatment. It's about how the children I know will live their lives out."

And above all, she said, "Cancer gave me the motivation to Relay. we have to go out, fight, do battle. My chicken way of sitting in a chair and waiting won't help us win. Relay is a point of meeting, taking, doing, actively participating, getting money for research, and getting money for getting information out there. When you know in your heart that you and your caregiver are facing this thing together Relay gives hope, communication, strength... it also increased my spirituality, made me realise there is a reason why everything happens, why we're walking this track... It's not *my* cancer, it's cancer, and we're going to tackle it together ... "

hmmmm --- if that's not "fighting spirit", I wonder what is?

If you would like a complete text including the Q&A session please IM me, Poppy Zabelin, in Second Life.

We all had a Ball last night...

2007-12-16T05:06:00.000-08:00

November is officially Caregivers Month, and when Marissa Goodliffe, who is Chair of SL's Cancer Caregivers Group, realised that there wasn't going to be time to recognize caregivers properly that month, she decided instead to organize a party on December 15 to honor the caregivers in our midst and to invite the caregivers, survivors, and Relay For Life groups affiliated with the American Cancer Society in Second Life. She was helped by Nevar "Santa" Lobo, Pips Fetid, and Synergy Devonshire who put together charming Holiday packages for everyone.

The Holiday Party was one of the most memorable and successful parties I have ever been to in Second Life. I really had a ball. The setting was beautiful - the castle was designed and built by Pips Fetid; the music was great, a medley of seasonal songs put together by DJ Bcreative Wilde; and the conversation and the company was wonderful. And what made it worthwhile was that so many people from the caregivers, survivors and RFL groups turned out, both to enjoy themselves and to celebrate the caregivers whose caring makes such a difference to the lives of those of us touched by cancer. I saw many old friends and made new ones. Thank you so very, very much, Marissa, Nevar, Pips, BCreative (and a Happy Bday!) and Synergy.

Trader fights back

2007-12-11T03:06:00.000-08:00

In the latest of our "Fighting Spirit" series, Trader1 Whiplash of T1 Radio and Relay Rockers came and talked to cancer survivors and caregivers in Second Life about his personal fight with leukemia.

Trader is often called "the Voice Of Relay" in Second Life, and I have often heard him speak, but never before quite so passionately and personally.

He was diagnosed nearly five years ago. An enthusiastic golfer, he was diagnosed as a result of a routine sports medical when he signed on at a gym. After being given the scary news he was then told that it wasn't treatable... because it was too early... he lost his drive at work, his appetite, his girlfriend... and became seriously depressed.

The turning point was when other friends and family were touched by cancer. "We all have to find a source for our strength and mine comes from knowing that no matter how lousy I feel someone feels worse, that no matter how bad my cancer is someone else's is worse. When people offer me their prayers I ask them to send them to someone who needs 'em more than me." It was also around that time that he joined Relay For Life in Second Life and found a way to channel his energies into fighting back. When his white blood cell count got into the range that it needed to be treated, he was ready for his own personal battle, claiming that "...Chemo Sucks but its a lot better than the alternative. and hell, i have had worse hangovers!" (I HATE to think what those hangovers were like!)

Trader is in remission now, but he knows the importance of being surrounded by people who are there to support him through treatment. The nature of his leukemia is that in a few years he'll need treatment again. But he has learned to live with his cancer and is meanwhile back in pursuit of that one-digit golf handicap. "While I don't embrace it we have an agreement.. DON'T stop me from being me and I won't bitch about having it."

He ended with these words: "It's NOT easy to live with cancer.. and it's even harder to fight it, but as long as you have the ability to do so then damn it do it! JUST DO IT! the grass is a whole lot prettier when you are lookin down at it!"

The Road to Well Being

2007-12-02T10:11:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, December 1, there was a Well Being Conference in Second Life, organized by Tina Marlin and Sophianne Rhode.The conference focused on Real Life personal well being, covering all aspects of well being in three major sessions: Body, Mind and Soul. The aim of the organizers was to bring together people from all paths of life to share and discuss their experience and knowledge. Individual speakers talked about their strategy to master life with all its specific problems, what personal well being means to them, and how they reach (or are hoping to reach) this goal.

I spoke in the session on Body - physical health & awareness - on the topic of "Coping with Cancer - a Survivor's Perspective". It was the first time I have talked publicly about my life as a thyroid cancer patient and about how being diagnosed with a recurrence 25 years ago took me on a journey of learning to be more assertive and to participate more actively in my own treatment decisions and care. And then Marissa Goodliffe, Chair of the Caregivers group, spoke about "Coping with Cancer - a Caregiver's Perspective".

We also exhibited there to raise awareness for the Survivor and Caregiver groups and for the American Cancer Society's activities in Second Life.

The conference was very well organised and attended, and it was an excellent networking opportunity. Well done Tina and Sophianne! I hope you will be encouraged by the turn-out and the positive response to put on more events like this.

Anyone got a stress ball?

2007-11-26T13:55:00.000-08:00

Stress levels mounted all round when Sheeznit Naheed attempted to organize no less than 30 avi's in an interactive game of "Have you ever..." to break the ice and introduce the topic of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. Not everyone saw the point of the exercise, but it was a brave departure from standing in the auditorium and running through a set of Powerpoint slides. And yes, most of us DID get it, although Sheez must have been sweating bricks by the time he finished getting some order into us and explaining the rules to us umpteen times.

Then it was back to the auditorium. In real life a school psychologist in Columbine, Colorado (yes, that's right...) Sheez knows what he is talking about. And it IS a very serious subject. But, in another departure from convention, he avoided giving us a textbook definition ("you can all Google PTSD and learn a lot...") and concentrated instead on the relationship between stress and anxiety and illness. In his view and contrary to the findings in a recent study "there is TONS of evidence that avoiding negativity, being positive, avoiding stress, are all very effective in fighting cancer...". There were nods all round in the audience.

I can do no better than simply give you the chat log of Sheez's closing words:

Sheeznit Naheed: I live and work with folks everyday who are in the struggle with fear of dying
Sheeznit Naheed: or fear of living another day
Sheeznit Naheed: I know folks who have lived through hell
Sheeznit Naheed: some of whom the world will not let them forget
Sheeznit Naheed: and the strongest of them are fighters
Sheeznit Naheed: or artists
Sheeznit Naheed: or full of faith
Sheeznit Naheed: or they just ride a bike every day
Sheeznit Naheed: or they do awesome things for others in a virtual world
Sheeznit Naheed: whatever it is
Sheeznit Naheed: they LIVE STRONG
Sheeznit Naheed: and I encourage you all to do the same

And yes, there were a few Powerpoint slides. Synergy Devonshire who organized the talk is going to put them up in the Welcome Center so please go take a look. And she is compiling a transcript from the chat log - IM her if you want a copy.

The approach may have been unconventional but the message is likely to stick. And now I'm off to Google PTSD and see what more I can learn...

Understanding Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

2007-11-21T04:31:00.000-08:00

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder doesn't only happen to combat veterans and rape survivors. As the name suggests, it can affect anyone who has a significant trauma - including, for example, a diagnosis of cancer.

Understanding can be half the battle. Come and learn more on Sunday, November 25 at 2 pm SLT when Sheeznit Naheed will be speaking on PTSD in the Auditorium, American Cancer Society island. As a Real Life psychologist, working for Columbine's school district, Sheez is uniquely qualified to talk on the subject.

LM American Cancer Society Office, American Cancer Society (82, 81, 23)

Putting the emphasis on early detection

2007-11-20T15:04:00.000-08:00

Last week I had a sneak preview of the new Womens Health Clinic at the AMMC-Sprott Shaw college. AMMC - the Ann Myers Medical College - which was created by DoctorAnn Buchanan to test the possibilities of virtual training for Real Life medical and nursing students. I was shown round the womens' health section by Vera Zhaoying who in real life is a 4th year medical student in Holland and who is responsible for much of the build.

The main emphasis of this clinic will be on prevention and early detection. Vera showed me the four terminals in the reception area which in time will be linked to websites dealing with prevention, detection, and support topics. At the moment there are two examination rooms, one for breast and one for the female reproductive organs. The first room we went into is devoted to early detection of breast cancer and contains a mammography unit. (I "touched" the unit and was relieved to discover that it hasn't been completely scripted yet.) More equipment is going to be added, with the idea of expanding in the future to cover general womens health.

There's no doubt that visiting a womens' clinic can be a daunting experience for many of us in Real Life. So as well as being a tool for doctors and nurses in training, I can see the clinic being helpful in educating women about their bodies and the early signs of cancer, and getting familiarity with the various tests and instruments.

Dr Elspet Glasgow will be heading up the clinic.

American Cancer Society continues to innovate in Second Life

2007-11-18T13:38:00.000-08:00

Was walking around on ACS island the other day and ran into Zeina Zehetbauer who turned out to be a reporter for SLNN. Zeina interviewed Randal Moss (R.C. Mars in SL) who is the ACS representative in SL, Synergy Devonshire and myself, about current and future developments, including the survivorship activities. See:

http://www.slnn.com/article/american-cancer-society-innovation/

Art, from the heart

2007-11-10T00:20:00.000-08:00

I came across Artistic (Fimi) Fimicoloud's art several months ago and I immediately bought a copy of her work "Sparkle Lake Sunrise" which just literally sparkles with joy and hope. Next month marks three years in Fimi's battle against metastatic breast cancer. She is going through chemotherapy at the moment and is preparing to have surgery soon, but she agreed to come and talk to us in our "Fighting Spirit" series on Friday, November 9 about what has helped her to fight, in her talk "The Healing Power of Art".

Fimi started by using her art in real life to help her fight her own personal battle. Her painting has kept her from spending every moment wondering if her disease has spread to this part or that. Instead, her mind is filled with thoughts on how to portray the nature she so loves. She was fortunate to have an artistic background, and a strong love of nature. But as she goes on to say: "...art can heal anyone. If you are angry, pick up a black crayon and attack a piece of paper, if anger feels black to you. Let your heart lead you, and you will never go wrong."

A special feature of her paintings is that she tucks away a pink ribbon (symbol of breast cancer) into each one.

One picture doesn't fit this theme, it is Fimi's "The Warrior Woman", pictured above, with Fimi herself (her favorite avatar is a pink fox). She is a self portrait of Fimi "...from the inside. She is me, and I am her. She is all the warrior women who have fought this battle rising up from the depths of her roots she faces her enemy with bravery and self-assurance. Her shield, though armored and protective, is really her breast. S he was created when I found that my disease had returned to my breasts, leaving one hard, and misshapen. I felt frightened, and so I brought forth the warrior within me, the woman never stopping to end the fight."

When Fimi started to receive emails and letters, she felt the potential to help others see the joy in life, to celebrate. She has given talks, both in world and out, to help people to understand how art heals, and has been featured in her local newspaper and in Rob Stein's article in the Washington Post.

These words especially brought tears to my eyes: "My art, my life, is about looking forward, never looking back – looking back serves no purpose but to break one’s heart when you’re walking a path as difficult as some of us do. So instead I look forward – to that next beautiful sunset on the river."

I am proud to count Fimi among my friends. To read her talk in full please send an IM to Artistic Fimicoloud or myself. Her exhibition on ACS Island will be closing shortly as there is a lot of rebuilding planned, so hurry along there while you still can and if you can't get there in time use the SL search engine or IM Fimi or me to find out where she is showing.

We ended the talk with fireworks. Because it's about Celebration. About Hope.

Less Pain, More Life

2007-11-06T02:49:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, November 4, Dr Ren Stonecutter came to give us a talk on The Management of Chronic Pain - or "Less Pain, More Life" - in the American Cancer Society's Auditorium on ACS Island.

Ren has been treating chronic pain in his Real Life family practice now for four years and has taken several advanced courses in its management. His talk focussed on the nature of chronic pain, why traditional pain medications frequently don't work, some of the newer medications and non-pharmacological methods of alleviating chronic pain. He also focussed on helping both patients and caregivers accept the realities of chronic pain and set realistic goals for themselves to achieve maximum health even in the presence of pain.

My favorite part was when he quoted General George S. Patton, Jr, who saw thousands of soldiers who had been wounded in combat. He once stated that Pain is like an enemy.

"You keep moving around and the enemy cannot hit you. Same way with pain. The quicker you break away from the pain, the quicker you will drive the pain out of your system. You sit too long and you will not be able to move."

Well, Ren's talk certainly helped me think differently about pain. And judging by the discussion afterwards I think it helped others in the audience. Thanks, Ren. IM me or Ren if you would like a transcript or copies of the slides.

At the end of his session, Ren referred to a booklet called American Cancer Society's Guide to Pain Control, and we put the wrong URL up on the slide. Here is the correct one:

https://www.cancer.org/docroot/PUB/PUB_0.asp?productCode=F9637.00

Fighting Spirit

2007-11-06T02:33:00.000-08:00

Our first support group session in the "Fighting Spirit" series was a success, with Cruiser Gilman leading the discussion and talking about how he fought and won his battle with esophageal cancer, accompanied by his partner Zzeee Zaftig who is also a cancer survivor. So I have hopes that this formula will be a successful one going forward.

We have two sessions already scheduled in November:

Friday November 9 at 2 pm SLT - breast cancer survivor Artistic Fimicoloud will talk about the healing power of art and explain the message and content of her pictures - in the open air exhibition outside the Auditorium. FREE T-shirt for everyone who attends.

Thursday November 29 at 4 pm SLT - Erb Enoch talks about his experience as a male breast cancer patient - this will be in our usual venue, Hope Haven on ACS island.

Real Hope in a Virtual World

2007-11-06T02:00:00.000-08:00

For those who missed it, here is the link to Rob Stein's article in the October 6 edition of the Washington Post entitled "Real Hope in a Virtual World"

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/05/AR2007100502391.html?

Rob points out that an increasing number of major health organizations are taking advantage of virtual worlds for public health education, patient support and fundraising. His article mentions, among others, the American Cancer Society, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the March of Dimes, Stanford University CA, and Britain's Imperial College National Health hospital. The National Institutes of Health and Harvard Medical School are apparently now considering ways of taking part in a meaningful way.

Rob did some of his research as an avatar in Second Life and spoke with myself and several members of our Survivors group, among others, in the process of preparing this article - one of them Survivors member Artistic "Fimi" Fimicoloud who is going to be one of our next speakers.

"For Stephanie Koslow, 48, of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., her virtual life is helping sustain her as she fights advanced breast cancer" (writes Rob Stein). ""It's not real, but it's real in a way," said Koslow, whose avatar is a pink fox named Artistic Fimicoloud. "I might spend an afternoon trying on silly wings and laughing with friends. And laughter heals." "

Well said Fimi.

A Friend at the End of Your Pen

2007-11-06T01:34:00.000-08:00

A year ago Flash Alcott became a member of the club no-one wants to be part of when he heard the words "unfortunately, we found cancer." Flash has found it useful, like many of us, to write down his thoughts as he travels this journey. He came along on Friday October 9 and gave us an introductory talk about Expressive Writing, sometimes known as Journaling, and why cancer patients, survivors, caregivers, family members, and medical staff can find it helpful. I have an edited chat log of his talk so if you would like a copy send me an IM.

Flash is at this moment preparing to give a series of workshops on Expressive Writing at a cancer center in California and has offered to set up a similar course in Second Life. IM him if you would be interested in taking part.

ACS Office News

2007-11-06T01:00:00.000-08:00

Randal Moss who is the American Cancer Society's representative in Second Life recently announced some changes in the way the ACS Second Life Office is managed. Xandi Mars has been appointed as Office Manager and Synergy Devonshire as Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Chair. Fayandria Foley, Relay For Life Chair, and myself, Survivorship Chair, also make up the team. Woot! See:

http://slrfl.org/?p=106

SL's Relay For Life (R)

2007-11-06T00:46:00.000-08:00

I recently came across this account of SL's Relay For Life (R) 2007 by Moo Money, which includes a video record of the Survivor's Lap. (For those who don't know it, Relay For Life (R) is the American Cancer Society's signature event and the third annual SLRFL, in July 2007, raised around $115K in real dollars!) My IM's were flashing so much at the start and during the Lap that I didn't have much opportunity to just walk and reflect or take much notice of my surroundings. So I'm extremely thankful to Moo for this record. And it is a great introduction to SLRFL for any of our survivors who have just joined and want to take part in SLRFL 2008.

SLRFL machinisma: Survivors Lap
http://www.m.secondlifeinsider.com/2007/07/28/slrfl-machinima-survivors-lap/

American Cancer Society Opening Ceremony in Second Life

2007-11-06T00:15:00.000-08:00

Here's a few pictures and a round-up of some of the great write-ups we had for the opening ceremony of the American Cancer Society in Second Life on Sunday, September 23 and which I helped organize. Unfortunately, I had one of those SL things happen to me, my mic wouldn't work so the readings I was scheduled to give were taken over by my SL friend and soulmate, Synergy Devonshire, who is a fellow-survivor and is Publicity Chair for SL's Relay For Life 2008 among the many hats that she juggles at the moment.

During the ceremony people were able to light luminaria around the sim in honor of survivors and in memory of friends and family who have passed. And some of the survivors and caregivers read their own poetry and stories. We walked along the lit paths in silence to the music generously donated for performance during the event by some of SL's foremost musicians. Then the mood changed to one of celebration and hope, with a glorious fashion show, gala ball, and spectacular fireworks at the finish.

And did I mention that the sim crashed? Well, it did. It's disappointing when that happens although of course some would say that it's a sign of a successful event...

New World Notes
http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2007/09/riks-picks-fo-2.html

Rick Riel's blog "The Click Heard Around the World"
http://www.rikomatic.com/blog/2007/09/american-cancer.html

Second Life Insider
http://www.secondlifeinsider.com/2007/09/17/the-american-cancer-society-grand-opening-fashion-show/

ACS Island Opens and Fashion Fights Back - Metaverse Messenger page 13
www.metaversemessenger.com/pdf/2007/09/MM20070918.pdf

Style, song, sobs and lag mark American Cancer Society Gala
http://www.slnn.com/index.php/article/about/cancer-sim-opens/page/2.html?sid=aW2mC3nxefZAah6A

DoctorAnn Buchanan's talk about Depression and Cancer

2007-11-05T23:50:00.000-08:00

Friday, July 13 we had our first talk sponsored by SL's Cancer Survivors group in the American Cancer Society Auditorium in Second Life. DoctorAnn Buchanan who is the founder and Director of the Ann Myers Medical Center (AMMC) in SL came and talked to us about Depression and Cancer. It is clear that very many of us who are going through treatment for cancer at the moment and even those who have just completed treatment suffer from varying degrees of depression. DrAnn's take-home message was - "Above all, if you take nothing else from this talk, remember these things: YOU ARE NOT ALONE! Depression is NOT your fault! Saying you need help is a strength, NOT a weakness."

There is a transcript of the full talk available on a notecard. If you would like a copy just IM me in Second Life.