The Dragon Dream Team has grabbed the ‘C’ word with both hands and embraced it with their mind and body. The word being Control.
Cancer can try to take so much from an individual, but this group of women, decided not to let their diagnosis dictate their life.
“There is something about cancer that takes away your control,” Akron resident and 18-year cancer survivor, Susan Balmert, stated. “It is very empowering to get in that dragon boat. The dragon boat goes where you tell it. Cancer dictates your life for awhile, but being in that boat, we are in charge. It is very empowering.”
Dragon boating has been around for thousands of years. The sport originated in China, but has found its way to the United States. Jessica Mader, Silver Lake resident and breast cancer survivor, paddled for a breast cancer survivor boat in Canada. She knew the benefits that came along with it, so she and founding sponsor, Dr. Doug Wagner from Akron Plastic Surgeons, invested time and money into the first dragon boat team to hit Ohio waters, originating in the Portage Lakes area in 2007.
The only requirement for membership is to be a breast cancer survivor.
The team now has approximately 30 active paddlers, and 50 additional members. Survivor, Gina Fortunato, from Green, shares her experience. “I want to focus on my life after cancer. I have found a whole new group of friends. We don’t talk about cancer every day, but paddle boating has given me a great physical and mental outlook. You realize there is life after cancer.”
She has seen a huge change in the participants. “The ones who are newly (diagnosed), it is really hard, emotionally. You see someone who is dejected, but they do this and it is a positive environment. This gives them hope.”
Dr. Wagner believes the women benefit more than he realized. “At the beginning, I thought this would be something they would enjoy, but it is so much more. It is a very huge part of rehabilitation, which I really didn’t realize; and when they are out there, I don’t think they even think of breast cancer. They are athletes, they are friends, and they are doing something they are really excited about.”
There has been a real physical benefit as well. “For a lot of them, it is the first time they can get beyond the worries of breast cancer and all the negative effects,” Wagner explained. “They have been able to lose weight. They are healthier than before. The physical gains are as impressive as the emotional”
Treatment takes a toll on the body. “Major surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation really knock people down and take stamina,“ Wagner added, “but they are better than ever. ”
Lynn Fritz, from Uniontown, has acquired her own personal trainer since she has started dragon boating.
If you would like to be a paddler, be a sponsor, or find out more about the organization, contact Jessica Mader at 330-289-7684. The website is www.dragondreamteam.org.
