Let's Play to Beat Breast Cancer

Service Description

In the U.S., one in eight women will develop invasive breast cancer. Most will undergo treatments that significantly affect both their physical and emotional well-being. While support groups, therapy, and meditation are available, there are few spaces focused on fun, joy, and creative play. That's where the "Let's Play to Beat Breast Cancer" project comes in. This low cost program, offered through local art centers, community centers, and volunteer artists, provides a stress-free environment where women affected by breast cancer can create art through play. Here, participants are invited to let go of pressure and perfection, and instead, reconnect with lightness, imagination, and beauty; discovering moments of relief, joy, and new beginnings within themselves. "My friend Linda was the inspiration behind the “Let’s Play to Beat Breast Cancer” project. When she was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer, I invited her to come paint and play with me in the studio. It was during those sessions that I witnessed firsthand the incredible healing power of play and creativity. In just two hours, I watched her transform. She might arrive in tears, heavy with emotion, but as we played and painted together, her entire energy shifted. She began to smile, to laugh. The weight of everything she was going through seemed to lift, if only for a little while. By the end of each session, she was glowing with joy, with pride in the artwork she had created, and with a renewed sense of herself. She had found refuge, a spark of joy, a moment of peace. This is what I want to offer to other women facing breast cancer: a space to breathe, to create, a spark of joy, a moment of peace, and to feel alive." - Françoise Lama-Solet "When I was diagnosed and became really sick, I was also caring for my ill family members. I was overwhelmed. Then you looked at me and said, ‘You need to come, play, and paint with me—just come and play.’ So, I did. We painted, played, and laughed. In those moments, the weight I was carrying and my stress lifted. You told me, ‘Breathe, have fun, just do it.’ And I did. Those sessions gave me a new perspective. I discovered a creative side I didn’t know I had. I’m still painting today. It became a healing process. I found myself through it. I’m a different person now, less stressed, more at peace. And when I feel stressed, I go to my easel and paint. Not only did you help me, but you also helped bring out my husband’s creativity too.” - Linda