UW News

November 20, 2003

CFD: She helps cancer patients and their families cope

Editor’s Note: Throughout the Combined Fund Drive, which wraps up this week, University Week has featured UW employees who volunteer at CFD agencies.


Name: Marsha Donaldson

UW Job: Special Projects Manager, Development & Alumni Relations

Volunteer Activity: I am a patient/family volunteer with Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA). Patients come from all over the United States and around the world for treatment, and volunteers provide practical and emotional support to family members who accompany the patient. Activities can include helping with grocery shopping, walks around Green Lake, picking family members up or taking them to the airport, and having them over for dinner. Every family’s needs are different and length of stay can vary from 3 months to over a year. No matter how long a patient is here for treatment, it is hard for them and their family to be away from home and friends.

Organization’s mission: SCCA provides premier, patient-focused cancer care, supports the conduct of cancer clinical research and education, enhances access to improved cancer interventions and advances the standard of cancer care. It is a partnership between the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), UW Medicine and Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center.

How long a volunteer? Nine years.

Why this activity? My son and I lived in Spain for two years — 1988–1990. While there he got very sick with meningitis. This was well before e-mail was common and it was very expensive to call internationally. I felt isolated from family and friends back home. My friends in Spain stepped in and provided a great deal of practical (such as taking care of the dog) and emotional support. When I learned about this unique volunteer program, I knew how important a role a patient/family volunteer can play to families going through such an emotional and stressful time. I have also been able to use my Spanish with some of the families.

Memorable experiences: One of my favorite memories is of introducing a 5-year-old patient and his 4- year-old sister to the wonders of a public library. They both loved to read and be read to and their library card was very important to them. For more than six months we made weekly field trips to the library.

Satisfaction in volunteering: Being able to provide friendship and practical assistance at a time when their world has been turned upside down.