We had a good turnout at the Michigan LRG meeting on Saturday, June 22.  In attendance were Jim Mills, Diane and Dean Schmitz, Sue Severini, Susan and Ron Brandt, and new attendees Ali Tate, and Laura Boughner and her mom.  Ali and Laura shared their Gist stories and we all shared our current treatment and handling of side effects.  As usual, we also chatted about our lives, families and children.

The Michigan meeting is one example of a successful event. Read more about the importance of local meetings:

In the late 1970s, a type of therapeutic group meeting called an encounter group became popular, and group-intervention studies began appearing in a variety of science journals. An influential study by Dr. David Spiegel in 1989 reported that group therapy helped women with breast cancer to cope and live longer. The demand for support groups from people who have cancer has grown since then. Today, there are many hospital-based, independent, and national networks of support groups for people with various types of cancer and other diseases, as well as for their families. –The American Cancer Society

Life Raft Group members who attend local support group meetings report the positive interaction helps them cope better. Seeing others living successfully with GIST, sharing success stories and enjoying life is life affirming! Meeting others with this rare disease, who share so much in common, also gives proof to “You are not alone”. Something The Life Raft Group tries so hard to instill in each member of our GIST community. Janeen Ryan Outreach Coordinator for The Life Raft Group

Here is a link to the local group leader in your area

If you have any questions about setting up a local event, please contact Janeen Ryan at 973-837-9092 ext. 113.