Help Betsy Raise Funds for Stroke Survivors

I am the Executive Director and a support group facilitator for Stroke Support Association, a small nonprofit that has been holding support groups for stroke survivors and caregivers in the Long Beach, California area for more than 40 years.  While I love the administration, management, fundraising, event planning, and article-writing, being a support group facilitator is especially rewarding and always humbling, as I am among stroke survivors and caregivers who are living an entirely different reality from the one they had before the stroke. Both the stroke survivors and the caregivers share with one another their challenges and triumphs, while feeling safe enough to cry at times, interspersed with lots of laughter.

 Whatever occasional gray cloud hangs over my head while I drive to work, it will, by the first ten minutes of the groups, have completely dissipated and been replaced by a sunny state of awe and gratitude.

 Unlike most stroke programs, which combine stroke survivors and caregivers in one monthly meeting, SSA holds weekly, separate support groups for the survivors and the caregivers. The caregivers need their own space and time to share difficult feelings, deal with burnout, and come to terms with an often difficult and unforeseen new normal. 

The members of both groups support and learn from one another, while forming real friendships that blossom beyond the meeting rooms.

It is an honor to be among the people in both groups. 

For me, working for Stroke Support Association is more than a job--it's a labor of love.  Please consider making a tax-deductible donation of any size. Donations start at $10.

Thank you!

Betsy