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| Beverly and Dick Olson |
When Beverly Olson found out she had lung cancer, she was stunned and scared. “I hadn’t smoked a day in my life,” she says. “I couldn’t believe it. I am blessed with my faith and my church, but still, you hear that word ‘cancer’ and it hits you very, very hard.”
Beverly, who lives in North Pole, soon had many new and unexpected challenges, including dealing with the logistics of months of outpatient chemo and radiation therapy in Anchorage—several hours from home.
Beverly and her husband Dick didn’t have a place to stay and lacked the financial resources for hotels and transportation to get her to and from treatment. “Everyone who comes to Providence House has a storm in his or her life,” she says. “Here is the eye of the storm—peace and calm. If you want quiet, you can go to your room. If you want fellowship— people who understand what you’re going through —you can come to the community room. You can cook in the kitchen, visit with a minister, and have room for your family to visit. I don’t think I can put into words how much this place has meant to me. It’s just a blessing to be here,” says Beverly. “Now I call this place home, too.”
Despite the fact that Beverly and Dick qualify for financial assistance, they have donated what they can to Providence House.
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