LESSONS FROM A SURVIVOR : MARCIA WALTON
■❚ COMMUNITY OUTREACH & ENGAGEMENT
LESSONS FROM A SURVIVOR : MARCIA WALTON
BY JULIE COLE MILLER
“ You have to understand the meaning of courage ,” she says . “ It ’ s not the absence of fear . It ’ s having the fear , feeling the fear and [ you ] keep going anyhow .”
Photos courtesy of Francine Walton
ABOVE : Francine Walton and her mother , Marcia Walton , on a trip to Maine . LEFT : Marcia Walton and family . Francine Walton in red coat .
Marcia Walton is a life-long tennis enthusiast . She ’ s also a former biology and chemistry teacher , an avid reader , a yoga and meditation enthusiast , and a grandmother and beloved friend . She tackles her many roles with enthusiasm , but as a cancer survivor she is particularly exceptional : She has survived stage 4 Hodgkin lymphoma , one case of endometrial cancer and two cases of breast cancer .
This four-time cancer survivor has been an inspiration to many patients and staff members at the O ’ Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center through her work with the UAB Medicine Patient and Family Advisory Council , the Angel Squad and the Community Health Advisors program . She has such a positive spirit that she is often asked to share words of wisdom with those who need encouragement .
“ You have to understand the meaning of courage ,” she says . “ It ’ s not the absence of fear . It ’ s having the fear , feeling the fear and [ you ] keep going anyhow .”
Perhaps her resilience and interest in health care was acquired as a young pre-med student at Howard University . Originally from Connecticut , she has also lived in Montgomery , Birmingham , Atlanta , Ga ., and now in New Jersey .
“ I want to bring up a point : To get through this , to get through anything — you have to have faith , family and friends . And you have to have access to health care . We have to make sure that everyone has access to health care . Because if I hadn ’ t had access , I wouldn ’ t be here today . One of my favorite quotes is from Dr . King : ‘ Of all the forms of inequality , injustice in health is the most shocking and the most inhumane .’ It ’ s so important – so important !”
Also important to the O ’ Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center , Marcia is a mother . Her daughter , Francine Walton , is the director of Outreach & Community Education for the Office of Community Outreach & Engagement , where her work includes training and supporting staff and more than 400 community health advisors throughout the region on ways to lower cancer risks to share with family , friends , neighbors and others in their communities .
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