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Health & Fitness

Life After Cancer? Challenge Accepted

Tucked just off the main drag in the heart of Southport Village in Fairfield is a quiet retreat dedicated solely to rehabilitation and recovery in the aftermath of a cancer diagnosis. It’s called the CT Challenge Center for Survivorship and it truly is a beacon of hope and healing for hundreds of the area’s cancer survivors and their loved ones.

Seconds after walking through the bright, open entryway you’re instantly welcomed by the Center’s warm and knowledgeable staff. In front of you is an enormous studio that hosts a daily rotation of yoga, pilates, meditation, circuit training and more. To the left, is a relaxing reading room with plush sofas and quiet nooks. Beyond that is a sleek kitchen stocked with healthy food and recipes. Walk a bit more and you’ll see rows and rows of state-of-the-art spin bikes in one studio, next to another studio filled with medicine balls, free weights and other strength training equipment.

This is a place for healing and recovery but also for empowerment. It’s all the brainchild of Jeff Keith, a local cancer survivor. Keith founded the CT Challenge in 2005 to support survivorship programs throughout New England. The Center for Survivorship opened in October of 2012 and here Keith and his team have built a place where cancer survivors are given the tools to strengthen themselves through programs in exercise, nutrition and psychosocial support at little to no cost.

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Keith says a cancer diagnosis is something patients deal with for the rest of their lives – even after treatments stop. It’s the goal of his organization to help local survivors manage all of that and move forward.

“There are over 170,000 cancer survivors in CT and more than 13 million in the US. Thankfully, more than 67% of those diagnosed with cancer will survive, but most don’t realize that managing what comes after cancer treatment can often be just as difficult, including a lifetime of late effects of treatment, risk of recurrence and other diseases.”

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CT Challenge programs are funded by the Annual CT Challenge Bike Ride. This year’s ride is taking place July 26th and 27th at the Fairfield County Hunt Club in Westport. Participants choose to ride distances from 10, 25, 50, 75 and 100 miles, and this year, a challenge of up to 184 miles awaits those riders who sign up for the new 2-day ride. The ride has something for everyone - riders of all ages and abilities, from the casual to the serious cyclist. Each rider who participates agrees to raise a minimum amount of funds the ride they choose to do. Riders have until September 27th to raise funds.

The ride funds not only the Center but a number of programs throughout the state that have supported more than 54,000 cancer survivors last year alone. Funds go to support the CT Challenge Survivorship Network of 19 hospitals and cancer centers throughout Connecticut; and community organizations like the Susan Fund that provides scholarships to help young cancer survivors attend college.

During last year’s ride, more than 1100 riders and 323 volunteers, with 132 cancer survivors among them, participated and raised $1.55 million. To date, more than $9 million has been raised for cancer survivors.

The CT Challenge bike ride relies heavily on the help of hundreds of volunteers and with the expansion of the ride to a two-day event, they need even more volunteers to help this year. From helping with publicity for the ride to setting up along the route to helping clean up after the ride, organizers need all the hands they can get. You can find more detail on the opportunities at our site.

If you can’t help with the ride but you’d like to volunteer elsewhere in Connecticut visit us at VolunteerSquare.com. Be sure to sign up for our free e-alerts so we can keep you in the loop about the projects that interest you most.

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