Just what is this “Path of Pink” and how did it all start? I’m glad you asked…
In 2006, I, Jennifer Quack, found out I had breast cancer, at 34 years of age. I underwent the tedious, scary and sometimes painful journey that, for me, started with surgeries and is now ending with surgeries. I had my mastectomy at 6-months pregnant. Not long after having my baby, I underwent a very short regimen of chemotherapy. After two years, I began my reconstruction and am just now finishing up. So how does that all tie in with The Path of Pink? (Read more about my story here…)
During the many months between that first major surgery and my reconstruction, life was anything but normal. I had to wear a breast form. I had to buy special bras to encase it and hide it from view. On a day-to-day basis, this wasn’t all that hard. T-shirts and most blouses worked well to conceal this new artificial piece of me. But I ran into problems when I wanted to attend a Christmas Glitz…an annual party among friends that gives us the chance to get dressed up and go out on the town. I would browse for hours trying to find just the right dress. This task is hard enough without the added necessity of finding something that properly concealed a breast form! Anything even remotely low-cut would not work. Where skin would have shown, before, was now skin on the right side and a portion of my cover-encased breast form on the left. Very attractive. So many times I wanted to cry. Sometimes I did. Mostly, I complained. (Ask my friends. I’m sure they were sick of hearing me whine!)
For two years, I went through this process several times. Sure, I would find something that worked, after searching for hours, or even days. In the summer, trying to find a bathing suit was just as bad. Still in my mid-30s, I wanted to wear a bikini. A bikini with a pocket for a breast form? A bikini that hid the 8-inch long scar that ran from the middle of my chest up into my left armpit? You’ve got to be kidding! Sure, there are some well-made tankinis that will work with a prosthesis and hide most of the scarring, but nothing more. Pretty summer dresses and blouses…bikinis…elegant gowns…all a thing of the past. Until I decided to do something about it!
The Path of Pink was created to design clothing that would hide breast forms and scarring related to breast cancer surgery. Clothing that is fun to wear! Clothing that is still young and sexy! I lost my breast, darn it, but not my femininity!
Through the process of creating a clothing line, I realized that I needed a venue in which to sell these items. The perfect place to get our clothing to those who need it is the Internet. Creating an online store front became a part of our plans. But then that grew. Sure, a store front would be great, but what about adding to it?
The scope of our website changed as I realized that we could help relieve another frustration – the perpetual search for answers among millions of breast cancer sites around the net. I don’t know how many wild goose chases I went on in search of “bc” topics. Just the term “mastectomy” returns 4 million hits in Google! Sometimes I wasn’t even sure of the terms I should use to search. Just what is a modified radical mastectomy? Who else has been through breast cancer while pregnant? What is triple-negative???
Whenever I would search, I had to go to each site that came up to try to learn more about this disease I had. Some sites would be overwhelming. Some sites had been written for physicians. Some sites would make me register before I could even get to the information I was trying to read. Some sites were just not what they said they were. Just another frustration.
I realized that the frustration I experienced with my clothing and the frustration that would arise while investigating my cancer were two things I could actually change. Two things that I could have control over during a time when I had control over little else. Not only was I going to create a clothing line for women who are going through or have gone through the battles of breast cancer, but I was going to create a website that would help arm us against this disease and help us be our own best health advocate!
After months of research, I incorporated The Path of Pink as a nonprofit in the State of Michigan. Soon after, I gave an “Initial Presentation” party to a few friends and family members. Cassy Puskala was one of the people that attended…
Cassy and I met in the Elegante Wigs and Cosmetics shop in the Frandor shopping mall in East Lansing, Michigan. She had stopped in to find a wig for a party she was planning on attending. My best friend Suzanne and I were looking for my first wig to use, as I had just begun chemo and knew I would be loosing my hair in a few days. We might have talked for all of five minutes, but this wonderful young woman, who had undergone a journey similar to mine, offered up her card and told me to call her or email her, “Anytime!”
We never did see each other again, but kept in touch here and there just to hear about how things were going. We emailed each other every few months or so, in the 2 years that followed that chance meeting. Then, upon hearing about The Path of Pink, Cassy called me and emailed me immediately. She had been dealing with the same frustrations! Our sparse and sporadic contact had not revealed this, even though I knew there must be others like me out there.
Within days of learning about The Path of Pink, Cassy became part of our foundation. Her annoyance with bathing suits and gaping shirts sprung her right into our Vice President of Fashion position, and she hasn’t looked back since! Once you start seeing our Survivor Style! clothing, be sure to thank Cassy for her hard work at helping make this idea become a reality. Her vivacity, management knowledge and contacts will put us on the fashion map!
I am so excited about this new nonprofit. This is my way of giving back. I have had so much help along the way – during the breast cancer and with the establishment of The Path of Pink. Now, maybe we can help other women – mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, grandmas – find information on breast cancer just a little bit easier. Hopefully we can make cancer survivors feel good about their bodies again.
We’re going to learn how to beat this disease, and we’ll look good doing it!
…So that’s the beginning of The Path of Pink. Only the beginning! I can’t wait to live it as it plays out. And we can’t wait to bring our clothes to those who need it.
Thank you for reading about The Path of Pink. I can’t wait to hear about you – please join our forum and tell us your story!