A nice little excursion on the edge of Country Club Plaza is the Cancer Survivors' Park in Kansas City. There is a great background story to the park that I didn't know about when I went there. Turns out that H&R Block was founded in Kansas City.
Richard Bloch, one of the company founders, was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 1978 and given three months to live (ironically, I was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 1975 and given three months to live). He and his wife, Annette, didn't agree with the diagnosis given to them and sought aggressive treatment at M.D. Anderson in Houston (also where I was treated for my cancer.) Creating a non-profit,
the Bloch Cancer Foundation, was part of the couple's dream to help others with cancer. This park was the first of about two dozen created across the country to empower cancer survivors. I can remember being told that you're a survivor from the day you're diagnosed. As part of the sculptures that grace all of Kansas City, there are a few in the Cancer Survivors' Park, including this Transformed Flower, by Phillip Smith, III of The Art Office. I have tried to write several more things in here, but they keep disappearing. I will take that as a sign to let it go. You can see here some of the images from the park including messages from the Positive Mental Attitude Walkway to the Road to Recovery path. The Celebration Plaza statue and the plaque describing it are pretty spectacular, too. This was definitely one of the highlights of my KC trip. I'm so grateful to Army of Dad for finding it. There are also Cancer Survivor Parks in New Orleans - where I will go for a national board meeting in October - and one in Dallas, which is just a short drive away. Road trip, anyone?
A nice little excursion on the edge of Country Club Plaza is the Cancer Survivors' Park in Kansas City. There is a great background story to the park that I didn't know about when I went there. Turns out that H&R Block was founded in Kansas City. Richard Bloch, one of the company founders, was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 1978 and given three months to live (ironically, I was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 1975 and given three months to live). He and his wife, Annette, didn't agree with the diagnosis given to them and sought aggressive treatment at M.D. Anderson in Houston (also where I was treated for my cancer.) Creating a non-profit, the Bloch Cancer Foundation, was part of the couple's dream to help others with cancer. This park was the first of about two dozen created across the country to empower cancer survivors. I can remember being told that you're a survivor from the day you're diagnosed. As part of the sculptures that grace all of Kansas City, there are a few in the Cancer Survivors' Park, including this Transformed Flower, by Phillip Smith, III of The Art Office. I have tried to write several more things in here, but they keep disappearing. I will take that as a sign to let it go. You can see here some of the images from the park including messages from the Positive Mental Attitude Walkway to the Road to Recovery path. The Celebration Plaza statue and the plaque describing it are pretty spectacular, too. This was definitely one of the highlights of my KC trip. I'm so grateful to Army of Dad for finding it. There are also Cancer Survivor Parks in New Orleans - where I will go for a national board meeting in October - and one in Dallas, which is just a short drive away. Road trip, anyone? 
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home