The Dreamcatchers
This spring I put together a group of concerned members, family & friends of the Colville Reservation to participate in the Susan G. Koman Race for the Cure held in Spokane on April 30th. The Koman foundation is a non-profit organization that raises money to support breast cancer patients in the area of education, cancer screening equipment and treatment centers. My goal was to bring attention to the numerous women on our reservations that have been affected by this disease and the limited resources that they have. I know first hand the hardship those women in our area with breast cancer face because I am a two-time survivor.
Many of our communities are rural and do not have adequate health education, cancer screening equipment or treatment centers. It is for this reason I was happy to support the Susan G. Koman Race for the Cure and why I assembled a team named the Dreamcatchers. A dreamcatcher sifts our dreams and visions capturing our good ones in the web of life and keeping them with the people, but the evil in our dreams (like breast cancer) drop through the hole in the center of the web and is no longer a part of our lives. Like the dreamcatcher our team can work to help each other reach our goals and make good use of our ideas, dreams and visions. It’s said that the Dreamcatcher holds the destiny of the future!
The Dreamcatchers came out in force on April 30th, 90 members strong! It was an overwhelming site to see so many concerned citizens of our reservation ready to make a statement. Our team came in 5th place in overall fundraising out of 94 teams, raising a total of $3,670 for the cause. But the most important accomplishment we made was attracting attention to our problem. The Dreamcatchers were recognized in an article in the Spokane Inlander and the grant writer of the Koman foundation realizes that our area is in need of assistance. The grant writer will be working with me later in the year to establish a grant to provide some form of support for victims of breast cancer that live on our reservation!
I would like to thank everyone who joined and supported our team. I especially want to thank Dorthey Zacherle and her family for hosting a luncheon that raised funds and brought additional attention to our cause. I would also like to thank Gail DelaCruz, Virgil Seymour and DR Michel, three of our Inchelium Councilman who contributed and walked with the Dreamcatchers. Hopefully next year all of our councilman will realize the struggles that cancer victims are facing and will be more supportive.
The Dreamcatchers will be gearing up for next year so if you would be interested in joining us, please feel free to contact me. I would love to see more people in the Omak and Nespelem district participate! We will be having fundraisers throughout the year and making plans for future activities. I can be contacted by email at Sharon_deLeon@hotmail.com or you can call me at (509) 722-3412.
Thank you,
Sharon deLeon, Cancer Survivor from Inchelium!
