Tenaciously Teal Incorporated

Cancer care packs: care packs for cancer fighters play a crucial role in providing empotional support, physical comfort, practical assistance, and motivation during a challenging time. In 2023 the organization distributed 5,908 cancer care packs to cancer fighters nationwide. Care packs are filled with cancer fighting essentials for men, women, and children and delivered to treatment centers across Oklahoma and mailed nationawide at no cost. Care packs contain items like hand sanitizer, green tea, fuzzy socks, kleenex, gatorade, cosmetics, lotion, journals, puzzle books, and a handwritten note from an adult or child. Not only are care packs filled with items to bring patients comfort, they also symbolize an extension of love and hope for those fighting cancer, and provide both emotional and physical support.

Brave shave parties & empowerment shoots: at Tenaciously Teal we believe in empowering women to face the challenges of cancer treatment with unwavering courage and strength which is why we provide brave shave and empowerment shoots, where we come together as a community to support those who have experienced hair loss due to treatment. Cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery can cause various changes in appearance, including hair loss, changes in skin, and loss of eyebrows and eyelashes. These chanes can affect a womans self-esteem and body image making them feel less confident or beautiful. We offer brave shave and empowerment shoots for women undergoing cancer treatment as a way to regain some control of their appearance and boost their self-confidence. The organization provided several brave shave parties and empowerment shoots for women facing hair loss from cancer treatment in 2023. The brave shave parties and shoots empower women to feel beautiful in a supportive atmosphere while facing hair loss from cancer treatment on their own terms. For each brave shave photography, appetizers, and a hair stylist are provided at no cost. For each empowerment shoot professional makeup, styling, and photography are provided for the cancer fighter.

Specific assistance: cancer is a life-changing illness that affects not only the physical and emotional well-being of patients but also their financial stability. Many cancer fighters in our community are faced with mounting medical bills, lost wages due to extended treatments, and other unexpected expenses that can put a strain on their finances. Tenaciously Teal is dedicated to helping cancer fighters in Oklahoma by providing financial assistance for their unexpected expenses such as rent, utilities, transportation, groceries, and other essential needs. Since our establishment, we have helped many cancer fighters in Oklahoma and have made a significant impact on their lives. With basic necessities such as food and gas to get back and forth to treatment. Tenaciously Teal was able to provide tens of thousands of dollars to patients in need and struggling to afford gas and adequate nutrition in 2023. Many of the gas/grocery cards given to cancer fighters were provided to cancer fighters who had no other means to pay for gas to get back and forth to treatment. Some cancer fighters Tenaciously Teal assisted drove as far as 200 miles one way to their designated cancer center multiple times a month. In addition, the organization was able to significantly help many cancer fighters through the organizations board designated fund (bdf) - a grant program to help cancer fighters in extreme need. Applications are only accepted through cancer center staff, and payments are made to third parties. Grants to cancer fighters in need in Oklahoma in 2023 included: -preventing eviction and utilities being shut off for those struggling to make ends meet as they fight cancer. -getting the heat turned back on over christmas for a cancer fighter who was bed ridden and battling to stay warm. -assisting a fighter with the rent for her mobile home, but maybe most importantly giving her the funds to purchase fruit and vegetables that she craved but couldnt afford. -helping a family bury their loved one who had waited over a month to properly say goodbye to their mother and sister, because they couldnt afford to pay the funeral home bill. Their loved one was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer very suddenly in her 40s, and as stated by the family they come from poverty and couldnt afford the funeral expenses. When the t. Teal board of directors reviewed the funeral home bill the family had paid $50 here and there in an effort to lay their loved one to rest. When the t. Teal office called to tell the family about covering the remaining $1,500 of their loved ones home funeral expenses they sobbed and yelled across to the house to exclaim the good news. There is a lot of need in our state and adding a cancer diagnosis in combination with poverty is detrimental to ones survival. T. Teal seeks to stand in the gap for cancer fighters in need in our state by distributing grants through an application and verification process that significantly impacts the cancer fighters well-being.

Care pack parties: the organization hosts care pack parties around the state of Oklahoma in order to have volunteers help with assembling the cancer care packs and fulfill the demand for an average of 492 cancer care packs that were disbursed monthly in 2023. These parties are an opportunity for families to volunteer alongside each other and help spread love and hope to cancer fighters. Furthermore, our care pack parties provide great team building opportunities for companies across the state including paycom payroll,dell, and several civic and church groups.

Public awareness: the organization continued to grow its outreach in 2023, which was done through expansion of the public awareness program. A professional video was again donated to the organization to help reach new donors and to expand its mission. In addition, Tenaciously Teal participated in several community events to spread awareness about their programs as well as ovarian cancer awareness.