KAPA‘A — Breast cancer survivor Melody Pascua was just as excited Thursday as she was when the Samuel Mahelona Memorial Hospital started the cancer walk in Oct. 2012.
“This is a nice way to pay homage to our cancer survivors,” said Cheryl Tennberg of the Hawai‘i Health Systems Corporation Kaua‘i leadership team. “The residents like to participate in the walk, and besides, they really support each other.”
Pascua grasped Tennberg’s hand, and following the greeting by Steve Kline of the HHSC, led the procession of residents, staff and invited guests through the hope arch onto the cemented walkway around the hospital’s courtyard, nearly all of the walkers garbed in pink symbolizing October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Limited by COVID-19 considerations, the group marched a few laps around the courtyard, stopping for a rejuvenating snack before resuming the walk to the tune of prerecorded march anthems.
“It’s nice that we can reinitiate this walk that was started by our former recreational therapist Josie Pablo,” Tennberg said. “We would like to get past this COVID-19 so we can grow to where this could be a health fair with different vendors and the walkers making their way around them.”
The SMMH cancer walk was started by Pablo after Pascua, one of the popular residents because of her bubbling exciting lifestyle, and one of the hospital’s staffers, Elaine Morita, were both diagnosed with cancer at about the same time. The news greatly impacted the residents and, as a result, Pablo started a walk for the hospital. She shared love and kindness with the cancer patients.
The same love and concern grew the walk to where community businesses would donate to not only the hospital, but overflowed to the efforts of the American Cancer Society on Kaua‘i and, eventually, the community walk involving schools, businesses, residents and individuals, and even having the residents of Kaua‘i Veterans Memorial Hospital being bused over for the event that took place on Ke Ala Hele Makala‘e, the Eastside multi-use path, near the Kapa‘a Neighborhood Center.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 808-245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
