Being part of the solution is a privilege

I have often said that if government social services were doing their job, we could close the Lemonade Fund. I could retire and learn to play bridge and our staff could find better paying jobs in hi-tech 🙂

I also know that certain societal ills are entrenched, like poverty.  And this will always be a challenge. Not just in Israel but across the globe. And I also know that we can’t fix all that with emergency subsistence grants to women suffering financial hardship after a diagnosis of breast or gynecological cancer. Just like government agencies can’t make entrenched poverty disappear. 

Last week I learned something very powerful and very empowering at the 2nd annual ALL.CAN Conference on “Minding the Inequality Gap”. The conference program was centered on a platform to curate dozens of new ideas to make cancer care better and more accessible. That brought 200+ NGOs and physicians and social workers and policy makers together to brainstorm ideas for new and creative initiatives to close inequality gaps. 

What I learned was that just like certain societal ills are entrenched, like poverty, the desire to do good and creativity  

People whose desire to bring goodness, to see, are just as entrenched here. goodness and to help those in need is deeply entrenched. “Chemla” (lovingkindness) is in their DNA; and in the DNA of the organizations, NGOs, and even the government committees they founded or work in to overcome the inequality gaps in cancer care. 

Creativity and innovation is another thing entrenched deeply in the tapestry that is Israel. This community of innovators proposed a myriad of ideas – real practical ideas – on how to close inequality gaps in oncology care. Each idea was presented in synopsis form and together in small working groups, we brainstormed their feasibility, explored their merits, challenged the obstacles, and of course, argued heatedly (and loudly) over the details! We filled blank canvases with even more ideas that popped up as we evaluated the proposals before we convened to review the results and plan the next steps. 

When you combine entrenched commitment to see and do good, with entrenched creativity and drive, there is no limit to what can be done. No matter how badly we may think a government agency operates, or how cumbersome the bureaucracy has become. 

I am not naive. Far from it. There are many many problems, and many many inequalities in Israeli cancer care. We know this from 15 years of seeing first hand the devastating financial hardship a cancer diagnosis can bring. But we also know that Lemonade Fund grants to these women help. In the supermarket and in the hearts of patients who struggle to hold on to hope. That’s what keeps us going. It’s in our DNA. 

That’s what the ALL.CAN Israel initiative is all about. It’s even in the name! The Lemonade Fund is proud to be part of a community that embraces the idea that we all can do something.  To be part of the solution rather than to wring our hands and complain about how much others are not NOT doing. Together we see good and through that lens, we see possibilities. 

So retirement can wait a bit. It’s a privilege to still be a part of something so wonderful.