Support Allison Kent-Smith. We're all in this together

Hi, I’m Amy, a close friend of Allison Kent-Smith. If you know the Allison that I know, she reminds you that no matter the challenges life hands you, there is no time to dwell on the negative. Allison was recently diagnosed with breast cancer and I’d like to help her family spend less time worrying about the financial impact of this diagnosis and focus on healing.

Allison has been working as a startup founder for the past 7 years. If you know anything about being a founder, you’ll know that salary, insurance and safety nets are not part of the equation. Although she has health insurance, the costs for travel and seeking medical care to treat her cancer are overwhelming. I have spent my career in the insurance industry and know first hand that medical expenses can break a family after a cancer diagnosis. With this in mind, please donate to help Allison and family get through this challenging time. Hope you can contribute.

Below are some thoughts from Allison about her diagnosis that she posted for women patients and survivors experiencing breast cancer and also shared personally on Facebook. I think this sums up Allison and her spirit as she works through the challenges in the next few months. It is no surprise that Allison is now working on a fund idea to help female founders diagnosed with breast cancer get the financial support they need, more to come on that topic in the future.

Thanks for contributing to help Allison and her family during this challenging time.

Allison’s post about her diagnosis:

“The day cancer came to visit was just like any other day.

It was a Friday afternoon, early summer. The house was still. Sun shining through the west facing windows as it lowered in the sky. I was finishing work, the same as the day before. Except suddenly it wasn't, it was a day like no other.

I received my routine mammogram results online and when I saw the word "tumor", I knew. I just knew. I was certain life at that moment had forever shifted. Altered by this uninvited visitor taking up space in my body.

The everyday things like walking my dog or where to eat dinner with my family that evening seemed so trivial and small compared to cancer. Except, a month later, I know those things are not small at all. Those are the big things. The everyday simple amazing things.

Cancer gives us a gift of seeing this clearly almost immediately. We receive the power to sort through what's important in seconds. The moments my pre-teen daughter smiles or pushes boundaries. My husband stops and holds my hand. Hot bubbly baths. Good food. Movies that make me cry. Stories. Travel. Laughter. Sunlight. Shopping at Whole Foods. All of it.

Or when my sister looks at me like she knows, because she does. She was diagnosed with Stage IV Ovarian cancer about a decade ago. She's still here moving, smiling and living an amazing life. My Mom also received the same diagnosis, Stage IV Ovarian Cancer, about 20 years ago but wasn't so fortunate. And my Grandmother, a long time ago, survived early breast cancer with a Kentucky swagger that I remember clearly as a child.

That Friday afternoon I knew it was my turn with cancer. So how will I play this? I have no idea what the future holds with this diagnosis. The only thing I know for sure is that life is absolutely f'ing amazing. Every small, tiny bit of it. Even the hard and difficult stuff. I'll fight for the chance to spend as many days doing those small, tiny things that I can with the people I love. Every damn day.

So as I await my big surgery next week and all of the numerous unknowns, I know that I'm okay. I believe we're all okay.

Because we're all in this together.” - Allison Kent-Smith, July 7, 2024