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Nonprofit Overview
Causes: Cancer
Mission: Women at Real Risk (WARR) was founded in 1998 by Totlyn Taylor, a native of Jamaica, who is a breast cancer survivor. Totlyn?s journey with this fatal disease brought about her commitment and determination to help educate economically deprived women in Jamaica about breast cancer. "In Jamaica, many women living in rural areas are unaware of the dangers of breast cancer. Something that feels strange in woman?s breast could be deadly if unnoticed. In my homeland of Jamaica, thousands of women are dying each year because they are not taught early warning signs, or how to perform self examinations to detect changes in their breasts. "As a survivor of breast cancer, I would like to educate and save women from this treatable, yet deadly disease. Women on the islands tend to be very private about their personal lives, especially their health. It is important that Jamaican women know that if they should feel a lump on their breast, there is help and support." Totlyn?s commitment has empowered poor Jamaican women with education?education that they can use to live healthy lives, education that will help save lives. Officials at the Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute (CFNI) report that in Jamaica, breast cancer is listed as the number one cause of cancer death in Jamaica. WARR believes that education is empowerment. In the long-term, as more and more women attend WARR?s workshops, more women will become better educated about breast cancer and breast cancer prevention. Armed with life-saving information, they in turn, will be much more able to share this information and provide emotional support to daughters and friends.
Programs: Currently, the three main programs of WARR are as follows: 1. Educational Workshops: Since its inception in 1998, 55 breast cancer workshops have been conducted in Jamaica for poor women. In total, over 400 women have participated. These workshops provide information on breast cancer as well as early detection methods that should be followed. 2. WARRIORS: WARRIORS are Jamaican nationals who have been trained by WARR to conduct breast cancer workshops. To date, 15 WARRIORS have been trained. Our first group, who we call WARRIORS 1, is located in St. Mary Parish region in Jamaica. The next trained group, WARRIORS 2, began providing services in July 2002 and are located in the Inverness District in the Parish of St. Ann. The goal is to have 20 WARRIORS trained by December 2003. 3. Teen Program: WARR launched a teen Breast Self Examination group program in June2002. It began in Marymount All Girls? school in Highgate, St Mary, Jamaica. The program helps young ladies get to know their bodies, helping them learn to know if something looks or feels different.