A LIVESTRONG Leader Story: Shu
by Guest
Through the LIVESTRONG Leader program, we engage individuals across the globe who are passionate about and committed to making cancer a priority in their own community. LIVESTRONG Leaders are vital to the success of LIVESTRONG by helping raise awareness, recruit and engage others in the LIVESTRONG movement, fundraise and advocate to their elected officials at the local, national and global level. Below is an interview from LIVESTRONG Leader Shu Milne in France.
What Does LIVESTRONG mean to you?
LIVESTRONG means living that word every day… I think that powerful word says all you need to know about each and every Leader.
But for me, its, LIVE… LIVE with every ounce of my being and STRONG… being STRONG for 28 million people who can’t be strong for themselves.
For me LIVESTRONG is 1 word with 28 million stories…
1 small word – “cancer” with 28 million big stories, 28 million different experiences, 28 million different needs, 28 million different fights but just 1 shared enemy.
And that enemy is that horrible 6 letter word that we WILL defeat when we get together and… LIVESTRONG!
Why are you a Leader?
I am a Leader because I love life, I love my life, I love your life, I love 28 million lives and I want to live my life helping as many of those 28 million as I can, helping those who hate cancer, who hate chemo, who hate radiotherpay, who hate losing their hair. I want to tell them that there is hope, there is a future and there is a way to survive.
I am a Leader because cancer has given me so much more than its taken from me… its given me every one of you, its given me new, wonderful friendships all around the world, its given me love, its given me perspective, its given me a sense of belonging to something powerful and meaningful… its given me LIVESTRONG
As someone we all know says – “Whatever your 100% looks like, give it” and that’s exactly what I intend to do for LIVESTRONG.
What are you doing in your community?
I make connections wherever I can, engaging with people and raising awareness of LIVESTRONG in France. Of course because of the Tour de France most French people have heard of Lance but very
few have heard of LIVESTRONG. I hope to change that.
I hold events such as “Grow Yellow” – a wonderful day at a local nursery that grew and sold yellow & black plants to take home and grow in memory of a loved one or to celebrate a survivor, so we “grew plants” and we “grew” awarenesss of LIVESTRONG.
I’ve done Radio interviews with France’s largest radio station (although the journalist asked my French friend Christine to dothe talking for me on the recording – so the listeners could “understand”!!! – a bit of a dent to my ego when I thought I was speaking my very best french!)
I’ve done newspaper interviews to get coverage of LIVESTRONG in Normandie and I design a monthly newsletter for Cancer Support France for English speakers in France which includes my full page article about whats going on for LIVESTRONG in Normandie each month.
I’ve given talks at various events and I’ve even climbed a mountain in the UK with testicular cancer survivors from around the world… they even made me an honourary “one -baller”
and we had a LIVESTRONG Summit on the summit!
