CULPRIT
CULPRIT 19 PANDEMIC HAS A LOT OF PEOPLE SOCIAL DISTANCING SPENDING MORE TIME ALONE.
IMAGINE IF YOU ALREADY WERE
DEALING WITH A HEALTH PROBLEM
LIKE CANCER. WELL THIS IS A
VIRTUALLY ISOLATED YOU TO
PROTECT YOUR LIFE. MY NEXT
GUEST HAS AN IDEA SORT OF CHEER
UP THE SPIRITS OF THOSE WHO ARE
ALONE RIGHT NOW. GARY
ROSENTHAL, THE FOUNDER OF GLASS
RIBBON PROJECT IS JOINING US.
FIRST OF ALL, GOOD MORNING.
WELL, NICE TO SEE YOU. HEATHER
,I'M GLAD YOU'RE WITH US THIS
MORNING. TELL US WHAT THE GLASS
RIBBON PROJECT IS. THE GLASS
RIBBON PROJECT IS A PROGRAM
WHERE I WORK WITH PEOPLE
TOUCHED BY CANCER OR TOUCHED
BY ALL TYPES OF CANCER AND WHAT
WE DO IS WE MAKE MOSAICS IN
GLASS THAT I FIRE AND THEN TURN
INTO A STRENGTH STONE THEY CAN
HOLD ONTO THEMSELVES OR THEY
CAN GET TO A FRIEND. IT'S
SOMETHING SPECIAL THAT THEY'RE
ABLE TO CONNECT WITH PEOPLE
THAT CARE ABOUT THEM. WHERE DID
THE IDEA FOR GLASS RIBBON
PROJECT COME FROM, GARY? WELL,
I'VE ALWAYS TRIED TO COMBINE MY
ART WORK WITH SOCIAL SOCIAL
GOOD PROJECTS, SOCIAL VENTURE
PROJECTS. AND I WAS INSPIRED BY
A CANCER NURSE WHO WAS
DIAGNOSED HERSELF WITH CANCER
AND SHE TOLD HER MOTHER THAT
WHAT I WANTED TO DO WAS TO TAKE
TO STONES AND TO KEEP ONE
MYSELF AND GIVE ONE TO YOU AND
YOU WILL THEN BE YOU WILL HOLD
ONTO IT WHILE I'M IN CHEMO OR
WHILE I'M IN SURGERY. SO WE
CREATED GLASS SHEETS, MOSAICS
AND WE TURNED THEM INTO STONES
THAT PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO HOLD
ONTO THEMSELVES TO SHARE
THE SPIRITUAL ASPECT OF WHAT
THEY ARE. I LOVE WHAT YOU'RE
DOING HERE AND YOU'RE JUST
GIVING PEOPLE JUST THAT LITTLE
BIT OF HOPE, EVEN SOMETHING
TANGIBLE. I'M SURE HELPS RIGHT
NOW. INTERESTINGLY ENOUGH,
GARY, YOU'VE BEEN WORKING WITH
CANCER PATIENTS FOR QUITE SOME
TIME AND RECENTLY YOU HAD A
DIAGNOSIS OF YOUR OWN. WELL,
YOU KNOW, I BASICALLY WAS
DIAGNOSED WITH PANCREATIC
CANCER ABOUT A YEAR. AND I'M
ONE OF THE LUCKY ONES. I WAS I
WAS CANDIDATE FOR A WHIPPLE
SURGERY. THEY TOOK CARE OF
THAT. I HAD 18 NEGATIVE LYMPH
NODE BIOPSIES AND I FINISHED
CHEMO LAST FRIDAY. AND SO AS
FAR AS I'M CONCERNED I'M CURED.
BUT ONE OF THE THINGS I NOTICED
WHEN I WENT IN FOR MY CHEMO
AFTER MY SURGERY WAS HOW
DIFFERENT IT WAS FROM THE TIME
I WENT IN FOR CHEMO BEFOREHAND.
AND THIS IS BECAUSE OF
THE CALLS. BASICALLY WHEN I
WENT IN THE FIRST TIME
THE NURSES SMILED. NOW THEY'RE
BEHIND MASKS. WHEN I WENT IN
THE FIRST TIME ALL OF MY
FRIENDS WERE ABLE TO COME IN
WHENEVER I WANTED. THEY BROUGHT
A WARM LUNCH. NOW MY WIFE ISN'T
EVEN ALLOWED TO VISIT ME AND IT
WENT FROM AN EXPERIENCE WHERE I
WAS SHARING WITH EVERYONE TO AN
EXPERIENCE WHERE I WAS REALLY
VERY ISOLATED. AND SO WHAT WE
TRIED TO DO IS TO TAKE
THE STRENGTH STONES WE MAKE
WHICH ARE THESE GLASS STONES
THAT SOMEONE CAN TAKE AND PUT
IN YOUR HAND. AND WHAT WE'RE
DOING IS WE'RE SENDING KITS OF
THESE STRANDS SO THAT YOU CAN
SEE THIS BAG HERE. THIS BAG HAS
INSIDE OF IT SIX SPREADS
STONES. WHAT WE'VE DONE IS
WE'VE CREATED THESE STONES MADE
OUT OF GLASS. AND I WORK ON
THIS WITH MY BEST FRIEND AND MY
DAUGHTER WHILE I WAS ACTUALLY
HAVING A CANCER INFUSION. AND
SO THAT WAS SOMETHING I WAS
ABLE TO DO WHEN I WENT FOR
CHEMO. BUT PEOPLE TO GO IN
TODAY. THEY'RE BY THEMSELVES.
THEY'RE ISOLATED BUT THEY CAN
TAKE A STONE THAT WAS MADE BY A
CANCER SURVIVOR WHETHER IT'S ME
OR SOMEONE ELSE WITH THEIR
PARTICULAR CANCER, WHETHER IT'S
BRAIN CANCER OR PEDIATRIC
CANCER AND THEY CAN GIVE THAT
TO FRIENDS. AND WHAT WE DO IS
WE'RE RIGHT NOW IN THE MIDST OF
THEIR VIRTUAL CHEMO BUDDY
PROGRAM WHERE WE'RE SENDING OUT
A PACKAGE OF SIX STRAND STONES,
A SIX PACK AT NO CHARGE. WE
SEND THAT OUT FOR FREE. WE'RE
UNDERWRITING THAT PROGRAM
OURSELVES WHERE WE SEND THESE
TO NEWLY DIAGNOSED CANCER
PATIENTS, THEY CAN GIVE IT TO
THEIR MOTHER, THEY CAN GIVE IT
TO THEIR DAUGHTER. THEY CAN
GIVE IT TO A BEST FRIEND AND
SAY WHEN I GO IN FOR MY CANCER
TREATMENT I'M GOING TO BE
GETTING CHEMO 10 O'CLOCK NEXT
WEDNESDAY. REACH INTO YOUR
POCKET. TAKE OUT A STRAND OF
STONE. SAY A PRAYER FOR ME AT
MATCH. THANK YOU. WHEN DO YOU
WORK FOR JUST PROVIDING HOPE?
WHERE DO YOU PULL YOUR HOPE AND
INSPIRATION FROM? HOW DO YOU
KEEP YOUR ATTITUDE SO POSITIVE?
YOU WERE GIVEN A PRETTY SCARY
DIAGNOSIS AND YOU ARE SMILING.
WELL YOU KNOW I WAS YOU KNOW
I'VE ALWAYS HAD A GREAT
ATTITUDE BUT TO TELL YOU
THE TRUTH, LUCK IS BETTER THAN
ANYTHING. AND I WAS LUCKY THEY
CAUGHT MY CANCER EARLY AND
EVERY TIME I YOU AFTER I GOT
THE DIAGNOSIS I FIGURED I HAD
ALMOST NO TIME LEFT. AND THEN
EVERY TIME I WENT TO
THE DOCTORS I GOT BETTER NEWS.
AND YOU KNOW, THEY CAUGHT IT
EARLY. THEY GOT IT ALL OUT AND
THE LYMPH NODES ARE NEGATIVE.
AND SO I'M ONE OF THE LUCKY
ONES. AND I'D LIKE TO BE ABLE
TO SHARE, YOU KNOW,
THE STRENGTH THAT I HAVE WITH
OTHER PEOPLE NOW AS WELL. YOU
KNOW, SOMEBODY UP THERE WAS
LOOKING DOWN ON ME. OH, I THINK
FOR SURE GOD POINTED TO YOU AND
SAID YOU'RE GOING TO CONTINUE
TO DO GOOD THINGS. GARY, THANK
YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING THIS
STORY AND FOR SHARING YOUR
STRENGTH STONES WITH PEOPLE I
KNOW WE CAN ALL USE SOME
STRENGTH RIGHT NOW BUT TO BE
GOING THROUGH CANCER IN
THE MIDDLE OF A PANDEMIC. THAT
CERTAINLY ADDS A WHOLE NEW
LEVEL OF STRESS. THANKS, GARY
AGAIN. IT'S A GLASS RIBBON
PROJECT AND FOLKS CAN FIND IT
RIGHT THERE ON YOUR WEB SITE.
YEAH, IT'S IT'S LAST RIBBON DOT
COM CLASS RIBBON DOT COM.
THANKS, GARY. TAKE CARE AND
WE'LL HOPE YOUR HELP HAS A
REALLY, REALLY GOOD DURING THIS
TIME. IT'S PROOF