Every other week on NHPR, we like to highlight a local non-profit that’s providing a great service for the Granite State. On this week’s episode of Give Back New Hampshire, we’re hearing from the New Hampshire Breast Cancer Coalition.
Founded in 1992, the New Hampshire Breast Cancer Coalition is a statewide, grassroots advocacy organization whose mission is to advocate for and provide financial assistance to New Hampshire residents with breast cancer.
This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.
Betsy Westgate: My name is Betsy Westgate, and I'm the President of the New Hampshire Breast Cancer Coalition.
Jane Edmunds: I'm Jane Edmunds, and I'm the Support Services Manager of the New Hampshire Breast Cancer Coalition.
Denise Jeffrey: My name is Denise Jeffery, and I'm the Vice President of the New Hampshire Breast Cancer Coalition.
Betsy Westgate: In the beginning, our role was mostly advocacy on, like the state and federal level. But in 2006, we created a Support Services Fund, which has the purpose of paying household bills for New Hampshire women and a few men who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, and they are struggling with their or their finances as a result of that. The types of bills we pay are like rent, mortgage, utilities, car payments, child care, property taxes, all things that are normal daily expenses.
Jane Edmunds: Since the inception of the fund, we have supported 1,406 women in the state of New Hampshire and two men.
Jane Edmunds: People aren't always aware, but in breast cancer treatment, very often radiation is required. And for those of us living in the metropolitan areas like Concord or Manchester or Nashua, we're near radiation centers. But when you live up north or in western parts of the state or various areas in the state, that means you have to drive quite a distance every day to receive radiation, as radiation is required every day for a certain number of weeks. And that's a huge, costly expense with the price of gas now, wear and tear on the car. So sometimes we help people with gas cards that they can use to to buy fuel for their car to get back and forth to treatment, which is huge in many, in many cases.
Betsy Westgate: In 2024, we had more applicants than ever, and the bills they were asking help paying for were larger than ever. At the same time, our income from fundraisers and from individual donations was down. So the biggest challenge we face is having sufficient funding to help as many New Hampshire breast cancer patients as possible. It's really that simple.
Jane Edmunds: We also face the challenge of making sure that we are known statewide. We help people in 73 or 74 towns but we would like to help more people. We are a statewide organization and we know there is a very definite statewide need. We need to get the word out there, not just to patients, but to let people know statewide what we do and how much we need their support.
Jane Edmunds: I just think the organization is so important and meets the needs of so many people throughout the state.
Denise Jeffrey: When I joined the board, I was looking for a way to give back in a different way outside of my employment, and I've been so impressed by the passion and the hard work of the women on this board. And honestly, that's what keeps me coming back and seeing all the good work that's done and the appreciation of the people that benefit from the Support Services Fund.
Jane Edmunds: This was from a woman in the Bedford area, "Thank you, thank you, thank you a million times thank you. The worry of how I was going to pay my insurance and my rent was making me physically more ill. When I received your letter today, it was like the world will be right again. Your support means more to me than you will ever know. God bless you all."
