The need is great.
The proof is in the shocking numbers.
When Gilda's Club Simcoe Muskoka opened five years ago, 167 people were part of the program in the first year.
Now over 140 people a month - cancer patients, their friends and family members -are walking through the club's big red door seeking help.
The facility looks like a Muskoka lodge and is a warm, welcoming haven outside of the hospital environment.
"We know every year about 3,000 people are diagnosed with cancer in this region and that number is climbing and will continue to climb," said executive director Deborah Loosemore
Gilda’s Club Simcoe Muskoka is a free program of social and emotional support for anyone feeling the impact of cancer.
It was the vision of comedian Gilda Radner, as she rode the emotional and physical roller coaster of her own journey with cancer,
The theme for the 2nd annual Gilda's Week is connect, educate and donate.
There will be an open house "Frankly Speaking About Cancer" on Thursday from 5-6:30 p.m. followed by a seminar on cancer treatment and side effects.
Gilda's Club is a charity and hopes to raise $10,000 this week.
More than 50 business in the community are supporting the club by doing either a promotion on its behalf or collecting proceeds.
"Whenever anyone is diagnosed with cancer, whether its a man a woman or a child, one of the very first things that happens and you hear this over and over again from people is, they immediately feel like they've fallen off the planet. The emotional shock is so great," said Loosemore.
Gilda's Club doesn't turn anyone away.
People come from the city of Barrie but also 61 different communities throughout central Ontario.
They are all seeking support as they go through a traumatic experience.
"Cancer treatments are brutal. They are very very hard on the patient and very hard on the family and friends who are trying to provide support.
Our program is a place where people can connect with others who know what they're going through, can get information, get their questions answered and can be part of a community that just gets it, that understands what being diagnosed with cancer, what cancer treatment and what surviving cancer can do," Loosemore explains.
The message from Gilda's Club is simple.
"You don't have to face cancer alone."
Gilda's Club Simcoe Muskoka is located at 10 Quarry Ridge Rd.
