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Dedicated LGFB Volunteer Says It’s All-For-One,
One-For-All
by Stacey Resnikoff
The success of Look Good…Feel Better rests
on the shoulders of a dedicated nationwide team of almost 10,000
volunteers donating well over 40,000 hours of time a month. More
than 25 percent of today’s volunteers have participated in
the program a decade or more. And while cosmetologist Vilma Colon
Cobb of Columbia, S.C., stands out as a shining example – she’ll
tell you she’s just like all the volunteers: committed.
A 2000 Sunrise
Award-winner, Cobb’s been with LGFB for 12 years. Today,
it’s hard to keep track of all she does – from establishing
and leading LGFB (and Spanish LBSM)
patient sessions across her region, to recruiting and training
new volunteers, to media and event promotions. Cobb says she
feels a strong connection to Look Good…Feel Better – personally
and professionally.
“In the salon, (people) tell us things they
wouldn’t tell anybody else. So it was devastating when I
had customers who had just been diagnosed with cancer,” Cobb
says, thinking back to the days before her LGFB training. “They
came to me and I didn’t know what to say or where to send
them for their wigs (or anything).” Cobb’s salon partner
Patricia Adams, who was certified the first year of LGFB, came
back from the training and told Cobb, “I’ve got a program
for you.”
Insightful and In Sync
A vital member of the volunteer force in South Carolina ever since, Cobb says
LGFB has made a tremendous impact on her clients’ lives – and
her own. “I think (customers) have a lot of respect that we’ve
gone through the certification and training. They know I know what I’m
talking about…and I can give them hope that there is ‘better.’ I
see it in their faces when I do a program… There’s a saying, ‘All
I do is give them a glass of water.’ They’re just thirsty and
I give them water. (LGFB) nourishes their souls.”
Cobb, who was herself diagnosed with ovarian cancer
more than 20 years ago, says being a cancer survivor gives her
an added empathetic connection. “I didn’t go through
all the things many patients do, but I experienced denial and was
very scared. So I have a compassion for it…I tell them I
am a cancer survivor and they say, ‘good: there is hope for
me.’”
The Right Stuff
Cobb’s Salon ABC – which she runs with partners and fellow LGFB
volunteers Adams and Brad Ballington – is known in the local community
for the services it offers those in need. And thanks to the LGFB hotline 1-800-395-LOOK
(providing referrals to LGFB
group sessions and one-on-one’s in all 50 states and Puerto Rico),
more people in the community are aware than ever.
Cobb says the LGFB group sessions have the greatest
impact – on patients and volunteers: “We just did one
Monday and there were five ladies – all different ages – and
they walk in, they’re hesitant. You know, maybe somebody’s
talked them into coming. And they’ve got these sad faces.
So we get started with the program and (by the time) they leave,
they’re not only our friends, but they have a (bright) look
in their eyes and big smiles…. Each one of the volunteers
will tell you we get so more out of it than we ever put in. It’s
incredible.”
A Team Approach
As state volunteer trainer, Cobb sees the camaraderie blossom between the volunteers,
as well. And LGFB reinforces this connection through meetings and conference
calls to assure professionalism and trend-awareness across the nation. “They’re
always coming up with something new in the program. Yet I can leave Columbia
and go to New York City – and we’re all doing the same thing
all over the United States.”
Cobb and her fellow volunteers are helping LGFB expand
to smaller South Carolina counties, following the lead of the most
established states – California, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania
and Ohio. Some of her area’s greatest accomplishments include
starting the first LGFB program in a military hospital (Moncrief
Army Community Hospital, Fort Jackson) and innovating new ways
to attract volunteers. Cobb and fellow 12-year veteran Echo Morrison
have even “slipped in” the LGFB video to state cosmetology
license renewal courses to encourage participation.
Cobb is quick to share credit for all she does, pointing
out, “It’s not about us. It’s that we’re
able to give something to the patients…. God gave us a talent
to do hair, and makeup, and nails, et cetera – and this is
the time that we pay back. To somebody that’s in need…That’s
what all of us volunteers are about.”
More information on this survey can be found
in the official
press release — or call 1-800-395-LOOK. To find out about
local cancer support programs, call the American Cancer Society
at 1-800-ACS-2345.
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