What motivated you to found the Lady Garden Foundation, and in what ways did your personal experience influence its mission?
Honestly, I would never have imagined in my wildest dreams that we would establish a Foundation in memory of my late mother. Yet, as life has a peculiar way of presenting opportunities, another co-founder, Mika Simmons, who had also lost her beloved mother to gynae cancer, approached my sister and me a few years after our mother’s passing in 2011. It felt like a meaningful way to make sense of the horror we found ourselves in. We had no clear idea of what we hoped to achieve. Still, we were determined that it would be more than simply raising money for The Royal Marsden, especially for our wonderful doctor, Professor Susanna Banerjee. It was a stark reminder that Britain shamefully lagged behind America, Italy, and several other countries in the detection of the five gynae cancers. Raising awareness became our mission. Reflecting on the foundation’s journey, what have been some of its most rewarding moments or milestones? Having just celebrated our 10th anniversary, I believe we are incredibly proud of all our achievements. We are still battling on. Our doctors, especially John Butler, are truly Earth Angels,and when he introduces us to one of his remarkable patients, you feel very humbled. Obtaining research results that we have funded brings a huge moment of joy, but meeting survivors or those in treatment makes the entire process much more tangible and, more crucially, spurs us on to make a difference.
The number of women who reach out to tell us how we have helped them, in both small and significant ways, is yet another small means of alleviating our own Mother’s death, making it slightly less painful. We firmly believe in breaking taboos; most women don't actually refer to their lady garden as a vagina. We are now firmly dedicated to the belief that education is essential. We have grand plans and have no intention of calling it a day!
ladygardenfoundation.com
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