Jack’s Story

Jack, age 24, was born and raised in Naples, FL. He was living on his own, going to school at FSW and in the process of transferring to FGCU when he was diagnosed with unimaginable testicular cancer, stage III. As he began to navigate his way through the many appointments, tests, and doctors, he realized quickly that he could not do it on his own. He moved back home with his mother and younger brother. […]

Matthew’s Story

Matthew, 54, single and living alone in Cape Coral, was managing fine until he had a seizure at work one day. He went on the have another seizure at work and was dismissed from his position shortly thereafter. About a month later, Matthew was not feeling well and having shortness of breath. He went to the ER and was diagnosed with Pneumonia. While being treated as an inpatient, additional tests were run, and it was […]

Tony’s Story

Tony found his way to CAN through AVOW Hospice in January 2021. Tony was preparing to be released from the AVOW in-patient care to at home hospice care and “at home” was a tent behind the Circle K gas station. CAN quickly went to work looking for any organization that was able to help.  CAN made sure Tony has applied for SSI and he was just waiting on final approval. He finally began working with […]

Jeremiah’s Journey

Imagine watching your 3-year-old child go from a normal healthy happy kid, who loves to dance and play to a bedridden sick 4-year-old who is unable to walk, and barely has enough energy to eat. Jeremiah’s battle began after a complaint to his mom about leg pain at the end of 2019. Mom fully recognizing that leg pain is an odd ailment for a child, proceeded to take him to the pediatrician. After multiple visits […]

3 weeks in, a Big Vision and a Shoestring Budget

3 Weeks in, a Big Vision and a Shoestring Budget  It has been 3 weeks since I accepted the position as CEO at the Cancer Alliance Network, but it seems that the intensity of drinking through a firehose has not really diminished yet. Some would say, “welcome to the world of non-profits where you and your staff have to wear many hats and nearly do the impossible on a monthly basis.” Some would even say this is normal, but when you come from a background in wealth […]