Celebrating a Remarkable Humanitarian: Nancy Coulter News from the American Cancer Society, SCV Unit

Receiving the American Cancer Society’s 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award makes a grand statement about who you are as a volunteer and human being.
It says that you have selflessly devoted your time and energies to helping the ACS in its mission to save lives and cure cancer. It tells us that you’ve been a guiding and inspirational force for others, offering hope and answers at a time when people are likely to be more frightened than ever before in their lives.
It lauds you for being an innovative planner and worker bee. You have demonstrated these abilities through eager, ongoing involvement with a legion of ACS community endeavors and leadership roles. You have made it your business to educate everyone about cancer awareness, health and wellness, and the ACS’ many free services and programs. You have even walked up to strangers at the market and car wash to disseminate flyers containing this vital ACS information. You have ably chaired major ACS events — then joyfully stayed behind to clean up after a few thousand people.
Through such leadership and local Relay For Life efforts you have helped raise more than $6-million for ACS research and programs. You’ve long shown others that challenges are to be seen as opportunities to act, to improve one’s situation – and always offer hope and hugs, especially where there is pain and worry.
This very special person, previously hailed as ACS Volunteer of the Decade, accomplished all of the above (and far more) throughout the last 25 years.
But here is the real chill-worthy kicker: She did most of it while devotedly glued to her daughter’s side as that beautiful young woman courageously battled metastatic breast cancer for 19 years. Her daughter, our very own ACS SCV Unit Health Programs Manager Heather Warrick, succumbed to her disease four years ago.
After such a profound loss, many aggrieved parents would take a pass on remaining in the cancer-fighting volunteer world.
But not Nancy Coulter.
Despite a brief departure from the ACS after Heather’s passing, she came back into the fold swinging with all of her volunteer might – ready to slay that weighty foe and help the ACS create more birthdays. More than ever now, she craves the day when no one shall ever hear those three dreadful words: “You have cancer.”
Coulter, a wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, is humbly thrilled by the recognition and credits her family for her accomplishments.
“They have helped give me my positive attitude and desire to help others,” said the 48-year SCV resident and ACS Leadership Council member. “Watching both my mother and daughter battle cancer has fueled my passion for the work I do on behalf of the American Cancer Society. As Heather used to say, ‘Hope and hopelessness are choices. So why not choose hope?’ That’s what I do through volunteering.”
The epitome of compassion and can-do thinking, Nancy Coulter’s ACS 2016 Lifetime Volunteer Achievement represents an uncountable number of volunteer hats she has worn in every arena of ACS leadership and outreach. This lovely woman has been, and remains, a blessing to our community, an invaluable ACS asset, and a precious example of how the ties that bind can never truly be broken.
“I love what I do for the American Cancer Society on behalf of cancer survivors, and the fact that the State of California ACS Division thinks it’s worthy of recognition makes my heart very happy,” Coulter said. “My Heather had a part in this honor and that makes it especially sensational for me. We continue to be a great team.”
To learn about ACS programs, services, community activities/volunteering, and cutting-edge research efforts go to: www.cancer.org.  Call the ACS SCV Unit at 661-298-0886 option 3.  The American Cancer Society’s 24/7 number: 1-800-227-2345. You are never alone. The ACS is here to help.