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Like other affiliates of the Cancer Support Community, Gilda’s Club New Hampshire will offer free programs and services for men, women, and children impacted by cancer. Our innovative program will be an essential complement to medical care, providing support groups, healthy living workshops, educational programs, and social activities, all free of charge. Our support groups and program will take place in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire.

Give a gift, so that no one faces cancer alone.

Your support will allow Gilda’s Club to open and offer its support groups and services to individuals impacted by cancer, free of charge. Our evidence-based program will reduce feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and distress. Together we can open the club to empower our members and strengthen their hope.

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Video

Take a look at this video from Gilda’s Club Grand Rapids to see what the clubs are like.

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Blog

May 27, 2020May 27, 2020

Information for Living With Cancer

Whether you are the person who has cancer or a person who cares about them, it can help to have information about what’s happening. Check out the links below for good sources of information. Cancer Support Community Living With Cancer National Cancer Institute About Cancer American Cancer Society Cancer A-Z

May 8, 2020May 9, 2020

It’s All About The Hat!

A Kentucky Derby Fundraiser is coming to the Belknap Mill on Sept. 26, 2020 (if not postponed due to COVID-19) The event is being put on by Suzanne Caroselli of Eleganza Wig and Hat Boutique & Friends to raise money for Gilda’s Club New Hampshire and will be held at the Belknap Mill 25 Beacon Street …

Continue reading “It’s All About The Hat!”

May 8, 2020May 9, 2020

COVID-19 and Cancer

For many people who have cancer and compromised immune systems, this can be a time of anxiety. We’ve gathered some resources to help you find answers and information from trusted sources. Cancer Support Community The Cancer Support Community has an excellent blog with a variety of topics related to cancer support, advocacy, research and more. …

Continue reading “COVID-19 and Cancer”

Clubhouse

We dream about what our clubhouse will be like. As you can see from these pictures of a few of the other Gilda’s Clubs, they don’t all look alike! Maybe you can help us find the best place….

Space for exercising and social activities out of doors – preferably at least partially screened from view.

The reception area is the most visible spot where administrative and program functions meet. The receptionist greets members here.

Ideally, the kitchen will be adjacent to the Community Room, but have the possibility of being closed off from it, so that the noise doesn’t interfere with scheduled activities. This will be an activity center with cooking classes, pot-luck dinners, cookie-baking, etc.

Noogieland is the program for children 3-12 yrs. old. It will have activities with lots of movement, puppet shows, snacks, etc.

Building Size– The clubhouse can either be an existing building that can be adapted to the new use or be new construction of about 3,000 sq., ft.

The Community Room will need to accommodate at least 60 people seated at tables. This room is multi-functional, serving as lecture hall, party place and meeting room. There should be an adjacent kitchen for ease of handling potluck suppers and other social gatherings.

It is ideal to allocate room for a home-like lounge area adjacent to group rooms, where people can gather before or after group meetings, relax, or read. This could be an information-gathering area, with a computer that members can access, and books and videos.

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Environment- The clubhouse is not only a meeting place, but the most visible and enduring symbol of the club’s philosophy and program. Builders and decorators of the clubhouse have the task of providing a warm, welcoming, homelike setting. Above all, nothing should suggest an institution, a social service agency, or an office.

The clubhouse’s red door can be any size and shape, just so long as it’s red, red, red. The entry mural should reflect the local culture and make a whimsical statement about Gilda Radner (hiking, fishing, motorcycle?)

Group Rooms- When selecting furniture, try to accommodate everyone’s comfort: supportive straight-back chairs, comfortably cushioned chairs, etc. The room may hold as many as 10 people.

Art and craft activities have proven to be very popular. Projects can messy and require their own space and serious storage.

About

Meet Our Leaders

**Pat Anderson**
**President**
Past President, Founding Board, Gilda’s Club Madison Wisconsin; Brigadier General, U.S. Army, Retired; Past-President and Treasurer, Laconia Rotary Club

John Perley
Treasurer
Retired CEO of the Champlain National Bank, Plattsburgh, NY; Director, Chairman of the Executive Committee, Champlain National Bank;
Trustee; Laconia Public Library; Director. Laconia Historical & Museum Society

MargaretDonnelly — Margaret Donnelly
Director
Serial Entrepreneur (JitterJam, AlignMeeting);
NH Charitable Foundation Lakes Region Advisory Board;
Laconia Human Relations Committee;
Welcoming NH Working Group

Jeff Fisher
Vice President
President & General Manager, Northeast Communications Corporation

Rod Dyer
Director
Attorney, Wescott Law, PA Former Mayor of Laconia, NH
Chairman Emeritus – Bank of New Hampshire

Sue Vincent
Gilda’s Team Leader
Former Administrative Assistant to Chief Information Officer – LRGHealthcare;
Institutional Review Board Liaison – LRGHealthcare;
Former Medical Staff Coordinator – LRGHealthcare;
Founding Member – New Hampshire Association Medical Staff Services

**Jennifer Anderson**
**Secretary**
Faculty, Lakes Region Community College & Plymouth State University;
Deputy Director, Laconia Motorcycle Week Association; Secretary, Laconia Rotary Club

Joanne Piper Lang
Director
Fundraising and Communications Consultant;
Past VP of Development and PR for Lakes Region Community Services;
Past President and Secretary Laconia Rotary Club;
Leadership Lakes Region graduate.

Our Goals

• To secure a safe, home-like clubhouse (about 3,000 sq. ft.) where nobody stays overnight, but in the daytime it will provide a healing environment away from medical settings, where those affected by cancer can have a refuge from the stress of dealing with serious, life-threatening illness. • To be open to the public, offering programs and services for people affected by cancer, by 2021.

Our Mission

The mission of Gilda’s Club New Hampshire is to ensure that all people impacted by cancer are empowered by knowledge, strengthened by action, and sustained by community.

Our Vision

We will have Gilda’s Club New Hampshire as an active affiliate implementing the Cancer Support Community program, which is the gold standard of psychosocial support for people affected by cancer.

Our History

Gilda Radner (for whom our club is named), was one of the original comedians in NBC’s Saturday Night Live shows. There she created several enduring characters, including Roseanne Roseannadanna, Emily Litella and Lisa Loopner.

When diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 1986, Radner sought support from The Wellness Community. She called for similar support-focused organizations to be available not only on the West coast, but everywhere. Unfortunately in 1989, Gilda passed away.

In honor of Gilda’s legacy, her husband Gene Wilder, and Joanna Bull, along with friends and family, founded Gilda’s Club in 1991. The first local Affiliate organization, Gilda’s Club New York City (GCNYC), opened its iconic Red Door in 1995. Since then, additional locations have opened worldwide.

In 2007, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released Cancer Care for the Whole Patient: Meeting Psychosocial Health Needs, a groundbreaking report on the importance of addressing the social and emotional needs of individuals facing cancer, rather than just their physical needs—an idea The Wellness Community and Gilda’s Club Worldwide had both been implementing for many years. This eventually sparked merger discussions between the two organizations, which aimed to increase operating efficiency and reduce overall costs in order to provide greater resources and influence.

In 2009, The Wellness Community and Gilda’s Club Worldwide merged, becoming a united organization under the name Cancer Support Community. CSC is dedicated to its mission of providing emotional support and psychosocial care for individuals impacted by cancer, including their families and friends. In addition to the clubs, the organization has developed online the Cancer Support Helpline, the Cancer Experience Registry and greatly expanded the Frankly Speaking About Cancer educational materials and radio shows. Further, CSC piloted an inaugural hospital-integrated model. Through all of these developments, CSC has worked to further expand its services so that “no one faces cancer alone”. Furthering CSC’s vision is their Research and Training Institute, which was born out of the necessity to better understand the complete needs of people with cancer and their caregivers and to improve the cancer experience. The Institute conducts cutting-edge psychosocial, behavioral, and survivorship research to gain evidence for improving cancer care. CSC’s Cancer Policy Institute is engaged in public policy and advocacy in Washington, D.C. and throughout the nation. Using the perspective of patients and grounded evidence, the Cancer Policy Institute strives to ensure that everyone has access to comprehensive care for all patients, quality as a central theme, and research as a critical priority.

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