Fighting Cancer Through Screening Legislation

Fighting Cancer Through Screening Legislation

Amy Cojanis, Bag It Cancer Administrative Services Manager, Mo Osife, Philanthropy/Advocacy Director for Cancer Support Communities of Arizona and Will Grove, Outreach Director of the Brain Injury Alliance of Arizona contributed to a guest editorial on how we can all come together to fight cancer through legislation. We are grateful to these writers and organizations as well as to Arizona co-sponsors like @SenatorSinema @RepRaulGrijalva @RepCiscomani for working to push multi-cancer screening legislation. Read our op-ed on the issue.

KGUN 9: ‘Bag It’ helps cancer patients navigate the road to recovery

KGUN 9: ‘Bag It’ helps cancer patients navigate the road to recovery

doctor patient bag it bagKGUN 9 News Anchor and Reporter Pat Parris Interviews colon cancer survivor Ingrid Jacobs and Bag It Cancer’s Executive Director Mindy Griffith about the impact the resources in the Bag It Bag have had on cancer patients.  Every month KGUN 9 features a local nonprofit for our Giving Project and Bag It is their charity for the month of February, 2023.

We invite you to make a donation to Bag It at KGUN 9’s Giving Project page. Their partners in the Giving Project, the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona, will match the first $500 in donations.

Watch and read this wonderful story about our organization.

Breakfast With Bag It Cancer Honors Valuable Partners

Breakfast With Bag It Cancer Honors Valuable Partners

The Breakfast with Bag It, a gathering of cancer survivors, advocates and friends, brought 135 people together.  It was wonderful to see guests from past events as well as many new faces.  Thank you to everyone for supporting this important event.

Our keynote speaker, Dr. Jennifer Hatcher, PhD, MPH, MSN, Associate Director, Community Outreach and Engagement Cancer Prevention and Control Program at the University of Arizona Cancer Center, kept the group engaged with insights on cancer demographics in the UA catchment area and challenges and opportunities for healthcare in Southern Arizona.  Board member, Richard White said, “Guests at my table said they were impressed with the entire event, and especially enjoyed the main presentation.”

Besides an update on new resources and accomplishments at Bag It Cancer over the past year, we announced the honorees for our Annual Recognition Awards. See below for their names and a video of them accepting their honors.

Thank you to our keynotes and all our guests!  See you next year.

Breakfast with Bag It 2022

We welcomed 135 guest at the 2022 Breakfast with Bag It

Mary Carhuff and Sherri Romanoski photo

Spirit of Philanthropy honoree, Mary Carhuff with Bag It Cancer Founder, Sherri Romanoski

Congratulations to Our Raffle Winners!

TerryMiraval Arizona 

Joan – Harry & David’s Gourmet gift Baskets for a year

AnnJim Click Cabin in the White Mountains 

Bag It Cancer’s
2022 Recognition Award Honorees

Outstanding Corporate Philanthropist

Tucson Medical Center (TMC) and TMC Foundation

Spirit of Philanthropy

Mary Carhuff

Outstanding Volunteer

Brandi Forbes

Watch Our Honorees Receive Their Awards

Thank You To Our Breakfast Sponsors

Heinfeld Meech Logo

Zuckerman Community Empowerment Fund
Arvizu Family
Glaz-Tech
Tucson Glass & Mirror
Watson Chevrolet
Vantage West Credit Union
Arizona Lithographers
AZ Jet Mail

Thank You To Our Table Sponsors

Arizona Oncology  |  Dr. Donald Brooks
Lighthouse Church International Tucson
Primerica Financial Services  |  Andy Corder
Russ Lyon Sotheby’s Int’l Realty  |  Marta Harvey
The Monday Spin Team
Michelle Bonito
Ginny Kokorudz
Sherri Romanoski
Richard White

Tucson Opinion: Arizona Congressional leadership standing up for patients

Tucson Opinion: Arizona Congressional leadership standing up for patients

Mindy Griffith - Board President – Bag ITBag It Cancer’s Executive Director Mindy Griffith’s editorial about the forward movement of the Medicare Multi-Cancer Early Detection Screening Coverage Act is featured in the Arizona Daily Star on October 6, 2022.  In it, she praises the seven bipartisan members of the U.S. House–including two members from Arizona’s Congressional leadership–for endorsing this impactful legislation that would ensure Medicare is able to provide coverage for early cancer detection tools.

Read the editorial.

Join Us in Welcoming a Happier New Year!

Join Us in Welcoming a Happier New Year!

Thankfully, 2020 is now behind us. There’s hope for 2021, a new year we are all welcoming.

The typical New Year’s resolutions to eat healthier, exercise more, spend less, and the like, just don’t seem to cut it this year. Consider instead some novel intentions to get through the next few months, with an eye on your dreams for post-pandemic life.

Last year was a tough year of loss for many of us. As we start 2021 and work to move forward we propose waking each day with the intention of “doing good”. Do good for yourself. Do good for your family. Do good for others.

If self-care was not on your radar last year, let’s get it on there now. Research shows that one of the best ways to boost your spirit and enhance your health is physical exercise.

Be of service (or a source of sunshine!) to others. Pick up the phone, send a note, practice random acts of kindness, or volunteer. Find a way to give back in a way that is sincere and meaningful to you. Besides improving lives and/or the planet research shows that our actions also benefit our own minds, bodies, and souls, helping to sustain us during these times.

Take time to imagine a new chapter of your life after the pandemic. What do you want it to look like? What’s important to you? How do you want to “do good” for others? Life is forever changed – did your goals?

Something fun and quite powerful to create is a vision board. This digital (there’s an app for that! iPhoneAndroid) or physical reflection (think arts & crafts collage) using photos, images, words and phrases expresses the life you want to live. Make it yours and keep your vision board in your line of sight to look at it each day. It keeps the vibes humming so your aspirations don’t get lost along the way. It also helps you actually achieve them. How are you going to “do good” this year (or month – baby steps)?

Dream Big and Do Good in 2021.