Smith Farm Center Patient Navigators

The Smith Farm Center is a non profit health education and creative arts organization that serves individual families and communities affected by cancer or other serious illnesses.

"This grant has been tremendous. Komen recognized the need they heard the demand by women who had been diagnosed by breast cancer. They want to have someone help them through the system because it is so overwhelming," says Carole O'Toole director of the patient navigators at Smith Farm.

The 700-thousand dollar grant from Komen will allow the center to go a step further with their navigation program and help African American and African immigrant residents in south east DC get adequate healthcare and other programs.

Carole tells us, "We teamed up to a number of churches faith based leaders in a number of underserved areas. Our navigators offer education series at their churches and out in the community on just general breast health and wellness."

In just the first 8 months the program has already reached 12-hundred people and they anticipate over the next three years reaching more then 8-thousand people in the community.

The navigators are made up of breast cancer survivors like Vanessa Antrum. With their help and the money from the grant smith farm is saving lives.

"We are raising the awareness and if women can see the mammograms aren't that bad and if you can go in and get information about saving your life then it is all worth it," says Vanessa Antrum.

Click here to learn more about the Smith Farm Center and the programs they offer.