Health Care Stories
Cayla Toomey
Cayla Toomey couldn’t remember her wedding day. Not because she was caught up in the moment, or because it was a whirlwind day. She doesn’t remember her wedding because she was barely conscious, and her family thought she was breathing some of her last breaths. On April 9, 2020, Cayla first visited ...
Autumn MacDonald
The sun dances on the right side of seventeen year old Autumn MacDonald’s face as she reflects on the shadows of her past. “I always felt like people were looking at me,” she explains about her struggle with social anxiety. “I would hide under the covers, not wanting to get out of bed. I would hide ...
Dr. Klassen
Every minute matters when you’re fighting for your life. What if the care you needed most didn’t exist here at home? This is the reality for some of our most critically ill patients at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital (CBRH). But together, we can change that. My name is Dr. Klassen, and I’m the Phy...
Julie MacKinnon
On my 50th birthday, I received the most devastating news. They had found a mass: My husband of 27 years, Brent, had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer. “I’m so sorry I have this now and you have to go through it again,” he said. My response was, “I’m here. I’ve been through this. I know what to ...
Petra Buis
My fiancé Andrew and I have always wanted a family. We excitedly began family planning in October 2018, and felt lucky to become pregnant eight months later, in May of 2019. We shared this joy with one another but were waiting until we made it to 12 weeks – the “safe stage” – to share our news with ...
Shannon Sidney
My name is Shannon Sidney, and I’m the Renal Program Manager for Nova Scotia Health’s Eastern Zone. At the Cape Breton Regional Hospital, our Renal Unit delivers care six days a week to some of our island’s most vulnerable patients. Because of the generosity of donors in our community, the Renal Fun...
Tara Baker
Peace of mind, a sense of relief, precious, uninterrupted time…these are just some of the invaluable gifts that donors, like you, give to Cape Breton families during some of their scariest days. My name is Tara Baker, and I’m the Clinical Nurse Lead for the Pediatrics Unit at the Cape Breton Regiona...
Lisa MacEachern-Burns
When I was a child, I would hear the word “cancer,” and think it was simply something my grandparents had. As I got older, it became something I donate to. But now, I have a much deeper understanding of the word. Because now, it’s become a part of my day-to-day life. My name is Lisa MacEachern-Burns...
Carrie Ann Maloney
“Cancer doesn’t define me, but it is threatening to take away everything weworked so hard for. It is relentless and cruel.” Carrie Ann Maloney knows she’ll never ring the bell to signify that she’s cancer free, but shecontinues to fight. She fights for something most precious: time with her family, ...
Island Breast Friends
A group of 5 women, called the Island Breast Friends have been raising money for Breast Cancer for nearly 14 years. On October 29th, they presented the Cancer Patient Care Fund with $8,500 to support cancer patients facing financial stuggles as a result of their diagnosis. The gorup, consiting of: P...
Claire’s Comfort Closet
On August 9, 2024, our daughter, Claire Isabel Burke, was born at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital. Shortly after her birth, she was brought to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), where she would spend most of her heartbreakingly short life. Just over a month after her birth, Claire was airlif...
Jeff Mills
My life was almost cut short this year. I survived, but without proper cardiac care and operating room equipment, many won’t. The Executioner. That was the name of the boat I was asked to help fix. It’s also a fitting name for the boat that nearly took my life. After diving beneath to repair the ves...
Jennifer MacDonald
“I could have gone back to have all my cancer treatment at Mass General Hospital, America’s #1 Research Hospital and Harvard Medical School’s original and largest teaching hospital, but I wanted to have my treatment at home – and that’s what Cape Breton is to me. My name is Jennifer MacDonald and I ...
Talan’s Tree of Stories
Talan Alexander Hillman was born on April 20, 2025, at just 23 weeks gestation, weighing just over one pound. Despite his size, he arrived in the world crying and making his presence known. His severe prematurity meant Talan needed constant care from his amazing health care team. Even though he was ...
Shannon Forrester
Health is not something my family and I have ever taken for granted. My mom’s chronic illness began when she was just 30 years old and, since then, she’s had a great deal of complications. None more devastating, though, than being diagnosed with colorectal cancer. My name is Shannon Forrester. Altho...
Laura MacNeil
Laura MacNeil and her husband Dan prepared for what would be one of the best blessings in life; the birth of their first child. Laura, a psychologist (candidate register) at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital, had a healthy and enjoyable pregnancy. She and Dan eagerly awaited the arrival of their new...
Danielle MacKinnon
“I have two daughters, Kinsley is 18 months old and Aselin is 4. Your children should never have to see you go through what mine have seen me go through this past year. They have had to see me so sick, weak and in pain and in such fear for my life. My name is Danielle, and last year I was diagnosed...
Claire’s Story
It was an act of kindness that offered Claire’s two children some sense of normalcy when she was battling cancer at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital. It was your donations that gave them comfort. She was here in Cape Breton, but they were 200 kilometers away in Antigonish. At only 9 and 6, they nee...
Allan MacDonald
These past few years have been tough on most of us, myself included. In fact, this past year has been the hardest of my life. I’ve spent almost every single day at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital, watching several of my loved ones be cared for by health care professionals. Some outcomes have been ...
Tanya Jessome
“When I was first diagnosed with bladder cancer, I was absolutely devastated. I was only 38 years old and the word ‘cancer’ was terrifying. I was a young Mom of three, living in Bras d’Or, and I wasn’t ready to battle this disease. It was May of 2014, but it feels like it was just yesterday. That’s ...
Alexandra Szeto
When I was just 19 years old, I felt like my life was spiraling out of control, and that I was losing everything I had worked so hard to achieve. I had just graduated high school, began my university studies, and was making important decisions for my future. But…life had other plans. My name is Alex...
Caitlyn MacDonald
Six hundred thousand. That’s how many patient-visits are made to the Cape Breton Regional Hospital each year. Forty-five thousand. That’s how many patient-visits are made to the Cape Breton Cancer Centre annually. And recently, one of them was my sister. At just 32-years old, she was diagnosed with ...
The Laurendeau Family
Can you imagine spending a decade wishing for one special miracle? Well, my wife, Tanya, and I did—you helped our wish come true. For 10 years, Tanya and I tried to have a baby. Doctors confirmed that we were in good health, but we knew that even if we weren’t able to conceive we could offer a child...
Ashley Hareguy
After receiving a rare brain cancer diagnosis in March of 2020, at the age of 34, Ashley Hareguy decided she would face every part of her journey with humour and positivity. Through surgeries, chemotherapy, and radiation treatments, while parenting a toddler, Ashley was determined to be the example ...
Dan MacDonald
My wife has always been a strong person. But I never realized just how strong until this past year: She was called into the hospital three separate times, being told I wouldn’t make it through the night. In 2022, I contracted pneumonia, and afterwards, COVID-19. After a visit to my doctor, it was su...
Kristin Crowe
To the valued donors of the Cape Breton Regional Hospital Foundation: As a medical social worker at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital (CBRH), I want to personally thank you - from the bottom of my heart - for the direct and positive impact you’re making in the lives of patients and in health care in...
Connor McLellan
“Everyone is afraid to say it,” Chelsea McLellan says boldly. “Suicide – nobody wants to talk about it.” At 21 years old, Chelsea hopes to someday pursue a career in psychology – but for her, the terrifying truth about suicide became real less than one year ago. “My brother was so intelligent and br...
Tanya Gracie
“Every day when I wake up, I live every day for that day,” reveals Tanya Gracie. At 38, she is a mom, a wife, an entrepreneur, and a patient at the Cape Breton Cancer Centre. “I knew something wasn’t right,” Tanya reflects on the months leading up to her diagnosis last year with bladder cancer. Afte...
Gordon MacDonald
Two decades ago, I was told I had less than six months to live. But I’m here to tell my story, 23 years later, because the Cape Breton Cancer Centre saved my life. When I was 37 years old, climbing a hill on my postal route, I found myself gasping and wheezing for air. I felt dizzy and as if I was g...
Erin MacEachen
It was Thanksgiving Day when I first found a lump. I had recently finished breastfeeding my daughter, Emma, and thought it was common for women to have cysts appear afterwards, so it was likely no big deal. I went about my day and my husband, Jody, and I continued to cook turkey dinner for my family...
Ellen MacKenzie
This year, Ellen MacKenzie was diagnosed with breast cancer. “Everybody has that one thing in their lives that gives them incredible strength and determination. Something that offers them power that they never knew they had and allows them to overcome any physical or emotional obstacle. Mine is my f...
Patrick Joseph Burns
In the months after Patrick Joseph Burns died (on August 17, 2020) his daughter, Cheryl Gallagher, on behalf of her siblings, Kim Luke, and Todd and Stanley Burns, proudly notified the Cape Breton Regional Hospital Foundation of their father’s gift of $200,000 as earmarked in his will – $100,000 tow...
Brenda’s Story
“When I was told I had stage II pancreatic cancer, it was like the wind was taken from me. Time stood still for a moment, but it seemed like forever. Then I heard my sister’s voice saying, “We will get through this.” I knew we would. My name is Brenda McCarthy and stereotactic body radiation is my m...
Greg MacLean
Pressing his hands against a warm cup of tea, sixty-six year old Greg MacLean of Sydney River tells his nurse Margaret a story about his three and a half year old granddaughter, Ella. As Margaret hooks him up for 3.5 hours of chemotherapy treatment in the Cape Breton Cancer Centre, Greg settles in a...
Danielle’s Story
I thought this past December would be my last Christmas. I honestly did. I didn’t know how I was going to explain this to my 4 daughters… After a diagnosis of cancer, I felt as though my world came crashing down around me. I felt like my life had completely shattered. I’m 37-years old, I know I have...
Caleb William MacArthur
Caleb’s Courage celebrates the life, love, & legacy of a beautiful, brave little boy named Caleb William MacArthur. On his third birthday, Caleb was diagnosed with cancer – Stage 4 High Risk Neuroblastoma (a rare childhood cancer that starts in immature nerve cells and ultimately forms solid tumours...
Dylan Mombourquette
He’ll never admit it, but he’s kind of a legend around here. Dylan Mombourquette is not only well-known for his years of punk rock in the Cape Breton music scene, as a drummer for Ricochet, session work with Lakewind Studios, Christmas Daddies and some other familiar local bands, but his cancer diag...
Jason Fedora
“I can’t say I’ve had an easy life. I’ve had my struggles and my demons, but cancer was by far the worst. My name is Jason Fedora and I’ve spent a lot of my life in Alberta, but I’m a Cape Bretoner, through and through. Currently, the status of my cancer is that it’s gone, but I know it’s never real...
Tanya Howley
For my 40th birthday, I booked a mammogram. You see, I’m a rule follower, and in Nova Scotia, 40 is the recommended age for your first annual screening. Never in a million years did I expect they would find anything. In fact, I still don’t believe it’s true, but the scars on my body prove otherwise....
Harland Fraser
“I’m starting to feel much better. I don’t have to get chemotherapy anymore and I don’t feel as sick. My name is Harland Fraser and I was diagnosed with a brain tumor this year. The kind of cancer that I had is only in 4% of kids who have cancer, so it’s kind of rare, but it’s also not as hard to tr...
Jillian Delorey
Every year, more than 1,000 babies are born at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital. Approximately one third of these babies – more than 300 – are born into low socioeconomic situations, including poverty. Beyond this, there are many other challenges that come with pregnancies. Having to choose betwee...
Joan Hardy
I give monthly and I do it in memory of Joan.” Sid Hardy lost his wife, Joan Hardy, 13 years ago. A beautiful life was cut short because of cancer. Sid sat down to tell us about Joan and her giving spirit that lives on. “I feel her with me every day,” Sid smiles with tearful eyes.” She was an amazin...
2024 - 2026 Strategic Plan
Guided by more than 1,200 stakeholders in our community, we are pleased to present our newest strategic plan, which will guide our operations into 2026. Read the strategic plan to learn how our Foundation will maximize our impact on health care on the island and beyond.
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Our Impact
With your support, we are eliminating barriers to health care in Cape Breton - Unama'ki. Thank you! Here's what happened in 2025:
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million
raised for health care in Cape Breton - the most in our history!
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patients
directly supported, when they needed it most.
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equipment
pieces purchased for the Cape Breton Regional Hospital.
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disbursed to priority health care needs on the Island.
2025 Report to Donors
Our Annual Report to donors outlines the achievements made possible when working together as a community. Throughout the report, you will discover the profound impact of your generosity in helping to eliminate barriers to health care in Cape Breton-Unama'ki.
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