Fighting cancer, one sale at a time

Hank Seaman
Portraits
hseaman@s-t.com

The human animal is, among many other things, a pretty predictable creature.

Rarely, when life is going well, do we plan for those times when it most assuredly will not.

Go well, I mean.

You know, sticking our heads in the proverbial sand ... leaving well enough alone ... whistling in the dark ... that sort of thing.

Unfortunately, says Melinda Reed, it often takes a personal tragedy to open most people's eyes, and I suspect she's right.

Take cancer, for example.

Until it hits them personally, most folks rarely think about cancer. It's almost as if the very act of thinking about this dreaded disease could somehow mysteriously -- some might say, superstitiously -- jinx the thinker and actually bring it on. So, for most of us, it's better to be out of sight and out of mind.

And Melinda Reed should know.

Before she lost her own father to cancer, the Mattapoisett woman admits to being as unaware and uninformed as most people about the horrific disease.

That all changed last November.

When 73-year-old Donald Mansfield died five weeks from the day he was diagnosed with colorectal cancer, Melinda says she learned a great deal about the illness -- the hard way.

"My father had no symptoms ... he was a very 'healthy' man," Melinda says. But what really threw her for a loop was when she learned how colorectal cancer is more than 90 percent curable when caught in time.

"What a waste," she says sadly. "Regular check-ups would have made all the difference in the world."

That was the day Melinda T. Reed made a vow to herself: From that time forward she would do all in her power to focus attention on the disease and its prevention.

"The death of a loved one profoundly changes your life, in ways you can hardly imagine," she shakes her head slowly. "That's why it's important for me now to increase awareness of this disease."

The way Melinda does this is by donating a percentage of each sale from her business to the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance (NCCRA), the non-profit foundation started by NBC's "Today Show" host Katie Couric and others two years ago.

Melinda's company, Ocean Offerings, sells distinctive giftware and jewelry, many pieces by local artists. The hand-crafted items, inspired by the sea, are available exclusively on-line.

Melinda's idea was to provide items not found anywhere else that would appeal to people who share her passion for the ocean and its treasures.

The quarterly donations she provides to NCCRA in memory of her father are not just "one-time deals," she says. "This is forever."

Additionally, a section of her Web site -- oceanofferings.com -- is devoted to her dad and others stricken with colorectal cancer, and is a big part of her message.

"It would be very easy to be angry or to be frustrated. It's always simple to look back and say 'What if?' or 'If only...' but that rarely serves any purpose."

Melinda prefers, instead, to remain positive and take a lesson from what she terms "the roller coaster of the past year," and "to learn from my bad experiences, and move on."

She wants to learn and grow.

Sure, this past year has been an up-and-down existence, she says, not only for herself but her husband, Peter, as well. But it has also provided her with an unexpected dividend in working more closely with her 14-year-old niece, Amalia Zychowicz.

She's thrilled that Amalia can be part of the family connection.

"She's not only my niece," says the proud aunt, "she's my friend. Amalia attends gift shows with me ... sort of like my consultant."

And if there is only one thing Amalia could take away from the experience, Melinda says, she'd like to think it would be "seeing how her aunt switched careers at this late date, and realizing anything is possible for herself in the future."

Melinda T. Reed is, you see, a fairly recent convert to on-line entrepreneurship, after spending more than 20 years as vice president of operations for a large Brockton medical concern.

"I have my certificate in Web master technology from Northeastern and always wanted to start my own business ... but leaving an established job and that kind of comfort level, then starting out on my own, was pretty scary."

Still, the Internet was overwhelmingly attractive to her, she says, because not only is it challenging and dynamic, but it is creative at the same time. Melinda's convinced e-commerce and Web design are simply where she belongs.

And, her goal is simple.

Beyond making a living she wants to use her business to help other families avoid what she went through, she says.

"Talk to your family and friends. Make sure they know about colon cancer, the risks and the screening tests available," Melinda concludes in a voice that trails off to barely more than a whisper.

"Maybe other lives can be saved."

Hank Seaman paints "Portraits" for you every Sunday, Tuesday and Friday. Telephone: 508 979 4504. E-mail: hseaman@s-t.com

Top / Subscribe / Letters to Editor / Contact Webmaster / Staff Directory
Please mail any comments to Newsroom@S-T.com
Call us at 508-997-7411