maggie s cancer caring centre newsletter | august 2016 · pdf file2 maggie’s cancer...

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Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre Newsletter | August 2016

Maggie's provides free practical, emotional, and psychosocial support within a unique healing environment to empower those touched by cancer to live through and beyond the illness.

We are a drop-in centre and all programmes are free of charge. Help us continue our work if you share our vision. For details please visit www.maggiescentre.org.hk.


Feature Story P.2-3

Activity Highlight P.4-5

Coming Up P.6

Maggie’s Volunteers P.7

Support Maggie’s P.8

CONTENT

Add︰Tsing Chung Koon Road, Tuen Mun

Hospital, New Territories, HK Tel：2465 6006

Email︰[email protected]

Website︰www.maggiescentre.org.hk

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“Just smile,” Chun Yuk reminds herself every morning, “like the way I do every

time I walk out the door of Maggie's.” A resilient disciplinary master and teacher

in a special needs school, Chun Yuk was diagnosed with fallopian tube cancer in

the summer of 2009. She returned to school upon recovery but not long until

2013, her cancer returned. Having been through cycles of treatments and a

surgery, Chun Yuk says she is most grateful now than ever before.

“My head was in the clouds when I was first told I

had cancer… I was shocked, devastated, lost.”

Chun Yuk recalls. “The doctor went on and ex-

plained the high risk of a tumour removal surgery as

the tumour was right by my main artery, and I did

not want to go for that option. I didn’t know how I

should feel about chemo, on the other hand, and

was worried how my family, friends, and students

were going to take it.” Chun Yuk had a million of

questions running through her mind with no answer

of where to start; the diagnosis basically changed

everything. Family and friends were supportive but

she needed to speak to someone who can give her

professional advice, or who has been through the

same. Her colleague then urged her to visit Mag-

gie’s Cancer Caring Centre, which was next to the

Oncology Department of Tuen Mun Hospital, close

to but separate from the hospital environment.

“Since my first visit, Maggie’s has been here for me

every step of the way,” said Chun Yuk. At Maggie’s,

oncology nurses were able to help her navigate

the maze of information available and find her way

Chun Yuk (Centre) is a Laughter Yoga Leader and loves to spread the joy of Laughter Yoga with other Centre users.

Feature Story | Chun Yuk

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to useful information that answers her questions

about the diagnosis, treatment options, and adjust-

ments in daily life, whilst professionals at Chinese

health talks and nutrition workshops gave her prac-

tical tips and tools to maintain a healthy diet during

and after treatment. Chun Yuk visited Maggie’s as

much as possible even when she was put on chem-

otherapy. The variety of support programmes Mag-

gie’s offers such as meditation, relaxation, laughter

yoga, qi gong and beauty workshop, was able to

complement her medical treatment in battling can-

cer, allowing her to look positively at every situation

and to take on a more active role in her own cancer

journey and road to recovery.

Just as Chun Yuk thought she got her life back on

track, her cancer returned in 2013 and had already

moved to other parts of her body. She was in a ra-

ther critical condition and a debulking surgery was

required to remove the tumour. Cancer recurrence

and a weakened immune system together was not

in Chun Yuk’s favour, but for the first time she expe-

rienced a deep sense of calmness -- being in and

out of hospital for too many times she had wit-

nessed more severe cases or even babies receiving

chemotherapy. Compared to them, Chun Yuk was

convinced she was born under a lucky star. Howev-

er, sometimes even the strongest person can be

fragile. “Amidst fear and anxiety I was given a map

to put one foot in front the other…Maggie’s clinical

psychologist helped me vocalise my difficulties and

showed me how I can find the pleasure and happi-

ness from everyday moments regardless of circum-

stances.”

Between her re-diagnosis and the surgery, Chun

Yuk made good use of her time by preparing herself

and her family and friends for what’s ahead. She

created her own memorial slideshow just in case,

which could ease the emotional burden on her chil-

dren. She wrote lovely cards for her family and

friends, recalling the great times they had spent to-

gether and thanking each and every one of them for

being in her life. Chun Yuk also prepared a letter for

her doctors in case of surgical failure, reassuring

them that she had lived life to the fullest and that

she was grateful for the medical team’s time and

effort regardless of surgery outcome. The day after

her surgery, Chun Yuk passed the letter to her doc-

tor by hand.

Having to adjust to a different kind of life is never

easy and recovery takes time -- Chun Yuk had to

relearn how to walk, balance herself, and use her

body. Today, Chun Yuk remains a frequent visitor to

Maggie’s; she completed the Laughter Yoga Leader

training and is now leading the Laughter Yoga prac-

tice at the Centre. The opportunity to give back is

something she cherishes the most now, as she

hopes to help other people in the way Maggie’s has

helped her.

“Happiness does not simply happen; you

need to go after it. But when you do, you

will find every day a blessing. There’s al-

ways something to be thankful for, and

simply being, is no doubt one of them.”

When asked to give the best piece of advice she

could to other cancer patients, Chun Yuk said the

most important thing to do is to accept the fact (the

illness) as soon as possible, embrace it and find the

courage to move forward. “Happiness does not

simply happen; you need to go after it. But when

you do, you will find every day a blessing. There’s

always something to be thankful for, and simply be-

ing, is no doubt one of them.”

Chun Yuk (Right) and another Centre user Sam (Left) were preparing for the celebration of Chinese New Year.

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The Fayre of St. John’s 2015

Following last year’s successful debut of the Christ-

mas carol spectacular, the second edition of "The

Fayre of St. John's", presented by Quintessentially

Lifestyle in aid of Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre,

was held on Tuesday, 24 November 2015 at the St.

John’s Cathedral, followed by an after party in KEE

Club. Kick starting the festive season, the evening

helped raise HK$2.5M for Maggie’s to further our

development in cancer care services. A big thank

you to Quintessentially, event partners Hong

Kong Tatler, Aviva, and KEE Club, and to all

sponsors and supporters!

The 2016 Fayre is now scheduled for Thursday,

1 December 2016, once again kindly hosted by

Quintessentially in aid of Maggie’s HK. So mark

your calendars and save the date!

Activity Highlight

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Hosted by:

Credit Suisse Calello Global Challenge 2015

The annual “Calello Global Challenge”, hosted by Credit Suisse in memory of their former Asia Pacific and Investment Bank CEO Mr. Paul Calello, took place in 2015 on 11 November in aid of Maggie’s HK. A unique initiative that embodies the philan-thropic, athletic and competitive nature of Mr. Calello, the Challenge raised over HK$68K for Mag-gie’s to help those touched by cancer. Thank you!

Healthy eating habits throughout cancer treatment are essential. We were delighted to have a team of qualified experts from Nestle HealthCare Nutrition with us on 9 December who hosted a nutrition workshop. They demonstrated easy ways to pre-pare healthy appetisers and shared with us their advice on maintaining a healthy lifestyle. We are grateful to Nestle for their continued support of Maggie’s.

Nestlé Nutrition Workshop

SHE DID IT! Many congratulations to our Centre Head Helen Lui and to her family for completing their hike of one of the most challenging ridges, Pak Sin Leng. Undertaking this challenge to commemo-rate three years of Maggie's permanent centre in Hong Kong and as a fundraising opportunity for the Centre, our adventurous team battled through wind and rain and finally conquered the mountain. Over HK$260,000 was raised at this activity.

Helen's Hike for Maggie's

It is not every day that our supporters visit Maggie’s and take a close look at what happens within the Centre each day. On 19 April we welcomed them to experience a day in the life of Maggie’s; some jammed with our music therapy instrument group, some learnt about practical tips and tools our oncol-ogy nurses give away, whilst some familiarised themselves with different types of therapies Mag-gie’s offers such as relaxation and meditation.

A Day in the Life of Maggie's

Hosted by:

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Have you noticed Hong Kong's AEON stores turn yellow on the 11th of each month? It's their 'Yellow Receipts' fundraising campaign and we are delighted that Maggie's has just been an-nounced as one of their beneficiaries.

Visit AEON on the 11th of each month from Au-gust 2016 to January 2017, shop and receive a yellow receipt, vote for your designated charity, and goods in the amount of 1% of total receipt amount will be donated by AEON to the charity.

This 'Yellow Receipts' fundraising campaign is launched in AEON stores, supermarkets and Liv-ing Plaza by AEON. On 11 September, we will place our Maggie's promotion booth in Tuen Mun AEON Store. Shop at AEON on the 11th and don’t forget to vote for Maggie's!

AEON “Yellow Receipt Campaign”

Follow Maggie’s on Facebook

and Instagram to stay tuned to

our news!

Coming Up

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Do you love a challenge? Do you have a creative touch? Or are you a group of friends looking for fun ways to fundraise together? You can take part in all kinds of fundraising activities or support Maggie's in a very direct way by helping as a volunteer. Belinda Ledger, a keen supporter of Maggie's Hong Kong, organised a Bake Sale which helped raise over HK$15K for Maggie's last November. She also volunteers at Maggie's every week to help with different workshops. Let's hear what she has to say about Maggie's.

Q: Which 3 words would you use to describe Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre? Nurturing, warm, peaceful.

Q: What is your favourite memory of your time volunteering here?

My first visit to the Centre when Harrow students and numerous users sang a variety of songs together at the tops of their voices - it brought tears to my eyes.

Q: What do you think is the most beneficial service Maggie’s offers for people with cancer?

The Centre offers so many helpful services but for me, the most important is making users realise that they are not alone at such a difficult time and that they do not have to be defined by their cancer. The positivity at the Centre is truly overwhelming.

Maggie’s Volunteers

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You can help Maggie’s in many different ways. Any help you can give is valued, and every donation helps us support people affected by cancer. We would like to thank the following foundations and supporters.

Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre -

Jockey Club Emotional & Psychosocial Support Programme

Funded by:

“Mind-Body-Spirit” Programme

Funded by:

There are lots of things in this world we can live without but books aren't one of them as they are one of the greatest pleasures in life. Here at Mag-gie's library we are happy to work with a great local initiative Read-Cycling – the brand new books were donated by them from part of the proceeds made at their annual reader's carnival Bring A Book & Share. Thank you for spreading the joy of reading to our users!

Read-Cycling

HULA is a new global marketplace for the resale of designer women's clothing, shoes, bags and acces-sories in mostly new or hardly worn condi-tions. A minimum 5% of profits will be donated across partnered charities including Mag-gie's. Visit http://thehula.com now and shop to sup-port our cancer care services!

Shop to Donate via HULA!

Support Maggie’s

Add︰Tsing Chung Koon Road, Tuen Mun

Hospital, New Territories, HK Tel：2465 6006

Email︰[email protected]

Website︰www.maggiescentre.org.hk

maggie s cancer caring centre newsletter | august 2016 · pdf file2 maggie’s cancer...

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