Breast cancer diagnosis reminded me that “I must put on my mask first...I have to be my own hero”. Why do I say that? As women, we are natural nurturers and tend to prioritize everyone else's needs, but not our own. Not to say that caring for the people, organizations, and causes we love is wrong, but sometimes we lose sight of being "the hero". In August of 2018, my lump was detected by my nurse practitioner during my second scheduled visit for my annual Well Woman Exam. I missed my first visit...because I was "too busy". When I was diagnosed I remember crying out "Lord why me...I did everything right!” And minutes later I said, "Why not me...and something BIG is going to come out of this!" When I embraced the journey as my own, I allowed it to mold me into the woman I am today, focused, vulnerable, and resilient. It is a blessing for me to share my journey with other women. One of the biggest joys that came out of the journey, is the creation of my nonprofit Pink Pearl Hero (PPH). The non-profit’s main focus is to support women who are actively going thru breast cancer, increase awareness of breast cancer screenings, and have conversations and provide resources about the “hero syndrome” via workshops and soon to be released podcast “Pink After Dark”. Our signature fundraising for PPH is for our “Hero Box” which is delivered directly to Nurse Navigators at Cancer Centers we partner with. The box contains items from women-owned businesses and will be location specific in the near future. We are excited that our first collaborations are with two phenomenal women; Michelle, owner of DemiBlue, 21 free Vegan nail polish, and Jazmine, owner of Becalia Botanical skin care. So why am it so transparent…it’s simple. 1 in 8 women get Breast Cancer in their lifetime and black women have a 40% higher death rate from breast cancer. Until those numbers drop…I continue to be my Hero and will keep sharing and standing in the gap along with all my Pink Sisters.Author Bio: Tamara (Tammy) Lewis, MPH Regional Vice President, Primerica. Pink Pearl Hero, Non-Profit Founder, Creator of 1DopePlanner Tammy (Brown) Lewis, hails from the mighty “ Show Me State” of St. Louis, MO! This Mom/Boss/Conqueror visions herself as a “Servant Leader” to her community in any work capacity that she has been in. Tammy started her career as a Health Educator, carrying on various roles in the community sector, research, and development, as well as the corporate setting, in pharmaceuticals. With her 12 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, she wore many hats with roles varying from Sales Representative, Regional Field Trainer, and District Business Manager. In most recent years, Tammy took a 360 career change from corporate America and jumped into the world of finance and entrepreneurship as a Regional Vice President, in Primerica. Her focus is to help people get on “The Right Side of Wealth” and put a financial “game plan” in place to help people succeed at the money game. A life-changing diagnosis of breast cancer has birthed two new passions. She is the Founder of Pink Pearl Hero Non-Profit whose main focus is to support women who are actively going thru breast cancer, increase awareness of breast cancer screenings, and have conversations and provide resources about the “hero syndrome” via workshops and soon-to-be-released podcast, “Pink After Dark”. Due to minor limitations during her breast cancer journey, she created a digital planner, 1dopeplanner that integrates digital and paper planning in one platform that allows people to be more productive. With a continuous focus on community service, she is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and Girl Scouts of America.
Social Media Profile Link: https://www.instagram.com/pinkpearlhero/?igshi
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