Carrying the torch
Breast cancer awareness advocate continues her mother’s legacy after three decades.
WHEN her mother died of breast cancer at the age of 56, Michelle Boyd was knocked for a loop.
“I went through the normal emotions,” Boyd said. “I was upset. Mad. Why? Why did this happen to our family?”
Eventually, she began to channel those emotions in a positive direction by raising money for breast cancer support and research in her mother’s memory. She did local fundraisers and participated in events through a national foundation for about eight years.
In the meantime, Boyd learned more about breast cancer and advocated for awareness among her friends and community. She began getting annual mammograms about the time her mother was diagnosed, even though she was still in her 20s.
She had been to different facilities to get her mammograms over the years, but found something special when she first went to Joyce Murtha Breast Care Center in Windber, she said.
“What an amazing facility,” Boyd said. “We are so lucky to have it in our own backyard. From the moment you walk in the door, they make you feel like you are the only patient – you’re their family.”
After experiencing the Joyce Murtha centre’s patient-centred approach, Boyd began to direct all her fundraising efforts to the Windber facility – part of Chan Soon-shiong Medical Center at Windber in Pennsylvania in the United States. There have been ceramics and painting parties, and cake-decorating gatherings.
Erin Goins, director of the breast care centre, said Boyd’s efforts provide more than additional funds to help patients who can’t afford care.
“She is a connection to the community as a whole,” Goins said. “Any time she hosts an event, she is not only raising funds, she is also raising awareness. It is so humbling to have someone who wants to give back.”
The energy Boyd provides is inspiring, Goins added.
“The staff at the centre tries to maintain our emotional composure,” she said. “However, we struggle privately with each patient’s story when they are diagnosed. It can become difficult to stay positive at times due to the nature of what we do, but it is because of people like Michelle that we are inspired to want to continue to do our best at providing care.”
Looking ‘to do more’
One of the big fundraisers is an annual golf outing in memory of Boyd’s mother, Helen Birus. This year’s event at Somerset Country Club was the fourth she has organised with help from her husband, Scott Boyd, and their sons, Travis and Logan. It’s the third event at Somerset.
When they decided to launch the outing, they lined up the date at Oakbrook Golf Club near Jennerstown. They put the word out with calls to family and friends and through social media posts.
“With 15 minutes of calls and social media, we had 80 people,” Boyd said. “We were sold out. After the first year, it’s kind of easy with people coming back.”
In addition to attracting golfers, the family has been able to offer prizes for drawings at the golf events through donations from businesses and other supporters.
The family lives in Lorain Borough. Michelle and Scott Boyd are the owners of Scotty B’s tavern, 324 Ohio St.
This year’s fundraising has taken on new meaning, because Michelle Boyd’s best friend is in her second battle with breast cancer.
Diagnosed at age 35, the friend thought she had beaten the disease. She’s now 41, and the cancer has returned, spreading to other parts of her body.
“It’s heartbreaking, and it encourages me to do more,” Boyd said.
As part of the recent Color Me Pink Run/walk, Boyd organised a basket raffle to expand the event’s benefit to the Joyce Murtha centre.
Knowing funds raised for the Joyce Murtha Center support cancer patients in the local community is a fitting tribute to her mother, Boyd said.
Helen Birus was raised in Johnstown’s Woodvale section and moved to Moxham when she married Matthew Birus.
A homemaker, Helen contributed to the family’s income, working part-time at the former Kopriva’s Market in Richland and selling her homemade pierogies and baked goods.
Boyd said the family always kept up with healthcare needs such as checkups and screenings, in part because her father had a number of health issues.
Helen Birus got her regular mammograms, but discovered the cancer herself between screenings.
“It just popped up and it was a very aggressive cancer,” Boyd said.
Her mother died in 1989, and Boyd said she has been amazed at the advances in breast cancer treatment that have been made since then.
“We didn’t even know what kind (of breast cancer) my mom had,” she said. “Back then, it was: ‘You have breast cancer. Here’s your treatment.’”
Because of the advances and her personal connections, Boyd is an outspoken advocate for breast cancer awareness.
“I encourage people to get screened,” she said. “Know your body. If something isn’t right, go to your doctor immediately.”
Men should encourage the women in their lives to get screened, she added.
“Early detection is your best defence,” Boyd said. – The Tribune-democrat, Johnstown/ Tribune News Service