Mission – Vision – History

Mission

The mission of the Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition (DBCC) is to empower our community by raising awareness of breast health issues and increasing access to care through outreach, education, and support services, to facilitate early detection and treatment of breast cancer.

Vision

Our vision is to create a caring community where barriers to breast cancer screenings are removed and all persons at risk served by DBCC have access to quality care and treatment. DBCC will ensure each individual diagnosed receives resources to become a thriving survivor, armed with the knowledge and support needed to conquer this disease.


DBCC’s diverse and inclusive team and board of trustees have a positive impact on our services and the delivery of our programs.  Aligning with diversity and inclusion practices enables DBCC to better serve our patients, employees, constituents, and all community stakeholders from different backgrounds. Our commitment to inclusion across race, gender, age, religion, identity, and experience drives us forward every day. 

Just as we empower our community with breast health education and resources to replace fear and doubt with knowledge and hope, we are equally committed to creating a culture where everyone deserves to feel safe, respected, able to contribute, and empowered to thrive.

Summary

The Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition (DBCC) is a 501(c)(3) that empowers communities by raising awareness of breast health issues through survivorship support services, outreach, and education, in order to facilitate the early detection and treatment of breast cancer. DBCC encourages everyone to share and advocate breast health awareness. We help those with low incomes and those with little or no insurance to receive free or reduced-cost care.

History

The Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition, Inc. (DBCC) began in 1991 as a small group of community volunteers, who were committed to decreasing the mortality rate of breast cancer in Delaware. In 1997, DBCC became a 501c(3) non-profit organization serving to raise awareness of breast health issues in Delaware through outreach, education, and support to help facilitate early detection and treatment of breast cancer. In 2000, the Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition’s board of trustees hired Vicky Cooke, the first full-time executive director, and opened an office in Downtown Wilmington.

In 2004, DBCC partnered with the State of Delaware to manage the Women’s Mobile Health Screening Van program to provide outreach and screening mammography services. In 2009, the mobile van underwent an upgrade to digital mammography imaging equipment and began to partner with Beebe Medical Center to coordinate our mammography services. In 2016 a new mammography screening van was unveiled which included cervical cancer screenings along with glucose, cholesterol, and blood pressure testing. At the end of 2018, the program transitioned from the Women’s Mobile Health Screening Van program to the Women’s Health Screening program. The new program focuses on navigating patients to freestanding screening facilities across the State of Delaware. Today, DBCC remains the only statewide organization focused solely on breast health issues as they affect the women and men who live here. DBCC also is proud to serve our neighbors in the surrounding communities in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and New Jersey.

Today, DBCC has grown its staff to a combined 19 full-time and part-time employees and has an office serving citizens in each of the three counties in Delaware – New Castle, Kent, and Sussex. DBCC has developed and implemented programs tailored to the unique needs of different populations, including young women with breast cancer, African-American women, Latinas, lesbians, and women with disabilities. DBCC has trained health care providers in providing culturally competent care and has conducted many educational sessions for the general public through corporate and community organizations. In addition, DBCC has referred thousands of uninsured adults for free and low-cost cancer screenings and has removed barriers to cancer screenings and treatment by providing interpretation, transportation, and support services. As a member of the National Breast Cancer Coalition, represented on its board of directors, DBCC has worked to support the national organization’s efforts to research the causes of breast cancer and pursue optimal treatments and cures.

The Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition is extremely proud of its resale shops, DBCC’s Great Stuff Savvy Resale and DBCC’s Great Stuff Home in the Talleyville Center in North Wilmington.  Great Stuff Savvy Resale opened its doors on October 2010.  The shop offers a variety of high-quality items, including women’s clothing, shoes, and jewelry. 

In October 2013, DBCC opened the doors to Great Stuff Home, a resale furniture store like no other. Offering gently used home furnishings and home accents like lamps and framed art for a fraction of the original price. In April 2020, as a direct result of the pandemic, a decision was made to combine both great shops under one roof! The shop continues to benefit DBCC as a year-round revenue-generating arm of the non-profit organization.  

Learn more at: www.greatstuffresale.com