CANCER SURVIVOR BEAUTY AND SUPPORT DAY

Barbara Paget has devoted her life to giving to those in need and to volunteering. This commitment inspired Cancer Survivor Beauty and Support Day, an international annual event devoted to reaching millions of cancer survivors, which Paget founded more than 20 years ago. Always celebrated on the first Tuesday in June, this year’s event will take place on June 4th.

Thousands of beauty salons, spas, barber shops, beauty schools, and wellness centers, in all 50 states, Canada, and Puerto Vallarta, will offer complimentary services of their choice to men, women, and children cancer survivors, regardless of their type of cancer or when they were diagnosed.

Cancer Survivor Beauty and Support Day provides benefits to everyone involved. The thousands of volunteers feel personally rewarded for their service. For the beauty school students, it is an amazing education and, most of all, the pampered survivors feel loved and supported.

Years ago, when a minor medical scare ended with a benign report, Paget felt very lucky. She took that feeling of gratitude and created something productive and meaningful for those not as fortunate.

After the scare, Paget became an active volunteer and was selected to represent the ribbon cutting at the opening of the Highland Park Saks Fifth Avenue store in 2000. Later, she was asked to chair the brand’s Key To The Cure, a four-day annual charitable event benefiting Highland Park Hospital’s Breast Center. Paget served as chair or co-chair of the event for more than 10 years, and the event’s huge success earned her a plaque in the Breast Center.

In 2003, Paget learned of a spa in Northern California that offered a spa day for cancer survivors (today it offers survivor spa services daily). The idea resonated so much with Paget that she immediately visited a local Highland Park spa and asked the owner if she would participate in something similar. Thus, Paget’s idea became a reality—first locally, then nationwide, thanks to places including Great Clips and the enormous support of Stand Up 2 Cancer.

One of Paget’s most meaningful encounters resulting from her volunteerism took place last summer, when the co-founder of the Paul Mitchell Schools, Winn Claybaugh, came to Illinois to speak to students. She so wanted to meet him that she drove to Lombard with the hope of shaking his hand. When Paget introduced herself, Claybaugh dropped his briefcases, hugged her, and visited for 20 minutes. Paget still gets emotional when she recalls the meeting.

“Volunteering can offer so much to everyone, from teens, who have social and stress issues, to empty nesters and retirees,” says Paget. “It is for that reason, and the fact that my event has grown each year, that my goal is to have Cancer Survivor Beauty and Support Day become a permanent federal day.” Former U.S. House of Representatives Mark Kirk and Robert Dold Jr. and current U.S. House of Representative Brad Schneider have introduced bipartisan proclamations.

Paget has received so much fulfillment from her more than 60 years of volunteerism that she is committed to spreading the word about its rewards and the importance of Cancer Survivor Beauty and Support Day. “Remember, the real beauty of the day is the support it gives to those in need,” explains Paget.

For more information about Cancer Survivor Beauty and Support Day, visit cancersurvivorbeautyandsupportday.org.