Annual Celebration of Life Walk honors cancer survivors

Cancer survivors and supporters gathered on Sunday for the annual Cancer Connection Celebration of Life Walk from Marine Park to Overstreet Park in a show of resilience against the disease.

About 20 walkers carried flowers and placards and wore hearts paying tribute to those who have or had cancer. Some of those hearts, like Bob King’s, bore their own names.

“I’ve been dealing with this for quite a bit of time,” King said.

Since his cancer diagnosis in 2017, King has attended nearly all of the Celebration of Life events. He said the community was important to him.

“I like to join and meet with friends and just sort of discuss what’s going on,” he said.

During the walk, participants chatted with each other about their experiences with cancer. Everyone had a story to share, with some there to support friends or family or remember lost loved ones, and others to find connections after their own diagnosis or to share their stories from treatment.

The City of Juneau Pipe Band met the group at the downtown Seawalk for the final stretch of the walk. Survivors rang a bell as they reached Overstreet Park similar to the ones used when a patient is discharged from chemotherapy. At the Tahku whale sculpture, the sounds of bagpipes and drums were replaced by songs from the Yées Ḵu.oo Dance Group.

One of the dancers, Siekoonie Fran Houston, shared her mother’s experience with cancer, saying that community was key in her recovery process.

“The best place to be is with the people, with song and dance,” Houston said.

Sheryl Weinberg, one of the organizers of the Celebration of Life walk, is president of Cancer Connection’s board of directors. She was diagnosed with cancer in 2013 and first participated in the event as a survivor. After retiring four years ago, she joined the board to give back to an organization that helped her through a tough time in her life.

“I used a number of the services of Cancer Connection when I was going through treatment, and then once I was recuperating and recovering, and always appreciated what they did for our community as an organization,” she said. Cancer Connection hosts a number of prevention and awareness events and support groups, as well as helping people pay for treatments.

This year the Celebration of Life walk was smaller because of the weather, but Weinberg said it’s always meaningful for participants.

“Sometimes it’s because you just kind of feel like you’re on the other side, and you really are celebrating, and sometimes you are in treatment, and you really need encouragement and to be lifted up and kind of carried in whatever way you can,” she said. “So it’s multifaceted, that’s the intention, and we’re happy to provide it for the community and I’m happy to participate in this.”

• Ellie Ruel can be contacted via editor@juneauempire.com.