By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Sandy Woodson with the Cancer Council of Reno County noted that even though she is going to retire, the organization will keep doing its work.
"Cancer Council of Reno County will go on," Woodson said. "The benefits will be the same and we hope to serve as many patients in Reno County as we can who need us. It's not going away. I'm retiring and moving on, but the rest of them are taking over and we've got great talent to take that over."
There has been considerable growth in the Cancer Council since its founding in 1999 and her taking over as Executive Director in 2008.
"We started with prescription meds, wigs, mileage, those kinds of really basic things that people were going to need," Woodson said. "We had probably 25 patients at that time, giving them about $500 to $600 a year. We'd run out by September and have to write them a letter and say, until our next fundraiser in February, we can't do any more. Those days have passed. We average about 260 patients a year in Reno County and we have, our annual benefit is $4500 per patient."
Woodson wants people who have cancer to ask for help, because the Council is going to be here to give it.
"The person that they hire for me is going to be that same person, who is going to reach out to our community and say, I need a bed for this lady, she doesn't have a bed to sleep in," Woodson said. "She needs to have that bed in order to get through this whole journey that she's on. There will be people there to help and the community has stepped up, always, for Cancer Council of Reno County."
For more information, go to the Cancer Council website, or call (620) 665-5555.