This week CanInspire Charitable Trust delivered their first CanBead creative therapy workshop with CanTeen in Invercargill.
CanTeen supports young people aged 12-24 years who are impacted by impacted by cancer – their own diagnosis, the cancer of a sibling or parent, or the death of a sibling or parent. They used to have a locally based worker in Invercargill but had to reduce staffing due to financial challenges.
Now they are finding their way again, following a restructure into three hubs. Canteen Youth Worker Leticia Little says “CanTeen’s Christchurch hub-based team looks after the whole of the South Island and travels to Southland about once every three months for events”.
CanTeen Psychosocial Clinician Moya Whiting explains “the purpose of events is to make connections with other peers who have similar cancer stories. And to have fun.” CanBead’s jewellery-making workshops provide a great opportunity for exactly that.
The workshop was extra special for Southland CanBead Tutor Rachael Todd, whose journey with CanInspire began almost 10 years ago. She was referred by CanTeen and attended a Cancer Society CanBead workshop with her mother in Christchurch, after undergoing a bone marrow transplant as a teenager.
“That one workshop kick-started a passion for jewellery making, giving me a purpose and something to do during my recovery.”
Over the years Rachael has upskilled to the point where she now makes and sells her own jewellery.
With CanInspire increasing delivery of workshops in Southland she was recruited as a volunteer when she attended a second CanBead workshop in Invercargill in late 2018, before being employed as a workshop tutor.
CanInspire was founded in 2010 by a courageous woman, Sarah Clifford. Sarah was diagnosed with melanoma in October 2008 at the age of 28. Whilst undergoing treatment in Christchurch in February 2010, she was given an assortment of beads, wire and the tools for making jewellery. During her 28 days of radiation treatment, she created and wore a different necklace each day.
This process not only provided distraction and fun, but also a great sense of purpose and accomplishment. The necklaces were later auctioned off at the Ashburton Cancer Society rooms, and raised over $3,000 for the Cancer Society.
These funds were put towards the startup cost of CanBead. Sarah knew by starting these beading workshops she could help so many others in similar situations. Since then, CanBead has become The CanInspire Charitable Trust and now operates in six regions from Gisborne to Invercargill. CanInspire has reached thousands of people and will continue improving personal wellbeing in the future.