The American Cancer Society’s Road to Recovery program offers patients free rides to and from cancer-related appointments.
For Carol Morris, a trip to the doctor is just one leg of a long journey. She’s been battling pancreatic cancer for almost a year. The tumor is in a place doctors can’t reach for a biopsy.
“It is an overwhelming diagnosis, and especially when they can’t tell you what stage you’re in,” Morris said.
“Being under the painkillers I was under and so forth, I couldn’t drive,” she said.
That’s where volunteer driver Darlene Parker helps.
“They say you get more than you give, and it’s true,” she said. “It’s been wonderful getting to know Carol and other people that I’ve given rides to.”
Last year, more than 3,600 volunteers gave about 77,000 rides to more than 4,000 patients across the country through Road to Recovery.
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“Not having to worry about transportation took a big load off,” Morris said.
“It’s a wonderful program,” she said. “Can’t say enough about it. And I wish more people would volunteer to drive for the American Cancer Society.”
Parker knows firsthand what her passengers face. She battled breast cancer when she was 23, then melanoma years later.
“It’s just so important to give back to those who are going through the journey now in any way that you can help them,” she said.
Morris finished chemotherapy and radiation and is staying hopeful as she awaits her next scan.
“One step forward every day, and instead of looking, like, how much further I had to go, looking at how much I had accomplished,” she said.
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