ROCKFORD—Years ago, when her husband was diagnosed with cancer, Dixie Ferguson couldn’t find a support group for him, or for her as his main caregiver.
She retired from her health care career to care for him, and then shortly after his death six years later, she herself was diagnosed with breast
cancer — and still could not find much support.
Now as a cancer survivor, Ferguson heads the St. Peregrine Cancer Support Group at her parish, Holy Family, meeting once a month with persons who have cancer, those who are supporting them, and those mourning the loss of their loved ones.
She shared the idea of a cancer support group in 2017 with Holy Family pastor, Father Phillip Kaim, who encouraged her and gave the group its name, St. Peregrine, after the “cancer saint.”
It is a group where “everyone is welcome,” Ferguson says, noting that it draws people from many Catholic parishes as well as other churches and those with no church at all. She welcomes also those with serious illnesses that are not cancer.
Whatever brings someone to the meeting, she adds, “their stories help others going through” their own challenges. Some people attend with family members, while others find it helpful to attend alone to speak with people who perhaps understand what they are going through better than family and friends because they’ve been through it too.
Meetings are held on the third Tuesday of the month from 12:30-2:30 p.m. in the parish’s Frassati Room, through a door left (west) of the church’s main door. Sometimes Ferguson schedules a speaker — from doctors to priests to grief counselors to lawyers — whatever the group requests or expresses interest in. Always attendees can share their challenges, past and present.
Some months bring something extra. The Nov. 18 meeting, for example, focused more on grief support as the holidays come closer. It included candles lit for lost loved ones along with stories about, and pictures of, them. In fall, the group walked through nearby Anderson Gardens. December’s meeting will include a “Christmas Tea” with food and music reflective of that.
“People can come check us out,” Ferguson says.
Ferguson has headed up the support group but notes that from its beginning her mother, Kathleen Elliott, and her daughter, Michelle Rhodes, have provided valuable help. More recently two attendees, Laurie Brick and Patrice Vecchio, have pitched in to lead discussions in Ferguson’s absence, and to create lovely snacks. Vecchio also led a spontaneous group prayer over one new attendee at the November meeting who was recently diagnosed with cancer. Ferguson says most meetings have one or two new people attending.
“There’s such a need for it,” she says. “People are happy when they find out about the group.” She has noticed that people are looking for a faith-based support group, saying, “It makes them feel good to walk into the church. It is so different from walking into a sterile hospital.”
Brochures about the group can be found at area hospitals and a few physicians’ offices, Ferguson says. She sends an email about each meeting to those who have signed up.
“It’s almost a part-time job now,” she says, adding, “It was my calling, I think. It’s what I want to do.”
For more information, contact Dixie Ferguson at 815-988-2830.
