Joining thE
Clubhouse
L
egendary actor and comedian Gilda Radner was the
inspiration.
After she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the 1980s,
Radner created networks of support from her very own
living room. There she gathered others living with cancer,
inviting them into her home for potlucks, conversation
and even the occasional informational session with cancer experts.
It was Radner’s wish that these networks of support be available to
others after her passing in 1989.
then three years with the American Cancer Society before she found
her home at Gilda’s Club Louisville. She joined as a volunteer and
helped guide the clubhouse to its official opening in August 2007.
As CEO, Morrison collaborates with Gilda’s Club’s Board of Directors and staff. She also works to raise funds and donations from a
variety of individuals, foundations and corporations while keeping
continuous growth and strategic planning in mind. While her responsibilities lie on many levels, the members of Gilda’s Club keep
Morrison and the rest of the staff grounded.
Her husband, Gene Wilder, and her cancer psychotherapist, Joanna
Bull, honored that wish and opened the first Gilda’s Club in Manhattan in 1995. Its signature red door, Radner’s favorite color, was
chosen as an international symbol of welcoming. Now more than
20 active affiliates across the country are guiding those affected by
cancer to lead a richer, more satisfying life. Among those affiliates
is the thriving Gilda’s Club Louisville.
“What I love here is that every day I get to see the fruits of our labor.
I feel like we get to do what makes sense for the people we serve,”
Morrison said. “Living with cancer is not a choice, but how you live
with it is. That’s really what we’re about.”
Gilda’s Club is many things to many people. It is a 100 percent free
experience for members, a home for both solitude and time with
loved ones, a gathering place for educational groups and life-affirming social events, and a calming place for reading and yoga. The
club is an outlet for grief, a cause for celebration, and a tool to help
define one’s life once cancer becomes a part of it.
“Anyone can be a member of Gilda’s Club; you just have to have a
connection to cancer. You can be well into survivorship. You can
have a relationship with a person who has cancer. All you have to
do is attend a newcomer meeting, learn our philosophy and what
it means to be a member,” said Gilda’s Club Chief Mission Officer
Joe Ferry, who came to the program after working with Hospice &
Palliative Care of Louisville where he served as the Coordinator of
Child and Adolescent Services for 17 years.
Guided by a common, core mission to engage and participate in
the cancer support community, each clubhouse across the nation
is given the latitude to create a customized program for the city it
serves. Gilda’s Club Louisville has been designed from the ground
up to respond to the unique needs of the Kentuckiana region.
However, the drive for members to give back to others affected by
cancer remains the foundation for each clubhouse.
“One of our members said something that stuck with me. They
said, ‘There’s always somebody three months ahead of me and
there’s always somebody three months behind me,’ ” explained
Karen Morrison, President, CEO of Gilda’s Club Louisville. “A lot
of people come here because they have something to give to others.
They come back to see how their friends and family are doing and
those relationships last beyond the clubhouse.”
That ability to give back and build long lasting relationships attracted
Morrison to Gilda’s Club as it began to build a presence in Louisville
nearly 10 years ago.
Morrison spent 17 years working for the American Red Cross and
6
Gilda’s Club offers support for those living with cancer and survivors,
but it isn’t exclusive. Anyone touched by cancer is encouraged to
join, free of charge.
Gilda’s Club has an average active membership of 1,200 people
each year who are served in numerous capacities such as support
groups and outreach/community-based programs. These services
can range from solitude in the clubhouse to dinners for nearly 100.
The clubhouse has more than 140 different programs taking place
each month. In these programs, members can create their own
networks of support in addition to their immediate circle of family
and friends.
“My belief is that when cancer becomes part of your life, your family
gets redefined. People who you thought were part of your inner
circle might fade away, and others who have been on the periphery
might really come through for you,” said Morrison.
Like many who call Gilda’s Club home, Morrison has had a personal experience with cancer which gives her strength through
the day. When her oldest daughter, Kinsey, was five-years-old, she
was diagnosed with aplastic anemia. Soon the doctors discovered
VITAL SIGNS Volume 10 • Issue 2