Sometimes the best remedy to life’s greatest hardships is right in front of your nose. At least it was for one local breast cancer survivor. By kickstarting programs that gather breast cancer
survivors together, united by a love of nature, Lois Wilkinson has become a cornerstone in a community that otherwise may have never existed. Speaking out about breast cancer Growing up, Wilkinson recalls that no matter the weather or time of year, she and her family rarely spent time inside. Moving from her family farm in Townsend to Dover may have changed how much time she spent outdoors, but her love of nature never wavered. But the week after Thanksgiving 2002, Lois was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 47. According to Wilkinson, at that time people around her didn’t feel comfortable talking about breast cancer, which only made her want to speak up more. “I was talking about it so much because I was trying to save lives,” Wilkinson said. “If I, at 47 years old, can get it, then pretty much anybody can get it.” That Christmas Eve she underwent a lumpectomy followed by eight rounds of chemotherapy over the course of the next few months until she was finally
declared cancer-free. Two years later, Wilkinson found herself heading the survivorship programs for the Delaware Breast Cancer Coalition. Nurture with Nature’s beginnings When crafting survivor programs, Wilkinson drew from her rural upbringing and the remedy that eased her mind: nature. What started as a walk with one or two fellow breast cancer survivor friends turned into an open invitation as they interacted with more individuals. Before long, the Nurture with Nature program was implemented by the DBCC in 2009, hosting regular events like hiking, kayaking, craft making and more attended by dozens of participants. To Wilkinson, the trips don’t just act as a happy distraction, they serve as a sanctum where friendships are built. “It’s a support group without anybody really thinking it’s a support group,” Wilkinson said. “If somebody is suffering, we hug each other, we laugh, we cry and we’re there to support each other. It’s definitely a close-knit group.” Changing with the times: ‘Nature is the best medicine’ When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it was harder to meet fellow survivors out in the wild, but once again, Wilkinson found a way to bring the community together and support the program as a whole.
Wilkinson sent her Rolodex of survivors on a relatively simple mission to take one picture outside. The overwhelming enthusiasm that she received in return sparked an entirely new branch of the program. Every week, survivors are now tasked with a photo
prompt. The responses become collages that are posted online, made into calendars and notecards and blown up into wall art that can be sold, with the profits
benefitting the program’s expenses. Wilkinson stayed in her role with DBCC until this
February when she retired after over 20 years of service, but she remains the program director of Nurture with Nature. “It doesn’t feel like work; I enjoy it just as much as the men and women do,” Wilkinson said. “Nature is the best medicine. It’s probably the best way I know to
relieve that kind of stress.”
Molly McVety
Delaware News Journal
USA TODAY NETWORK