Joyce Gooding Spirit of Komen Award Winner

Chandler Woman Honored by Komen Phoenix for Breast Cancer Outreach Among Local Chinese Community

PHOENIX – (June 15, 2011) – When Faustine Chan was in junior high school, a representative of the Phoenix Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® visited her classroom to educate the students about breast health. Faustine went home and told her mother – a Chinese woman who knew virtually nothing about the disease – what she had learned. Within two weeks, her mother pulled Faustine and her sister aside to tell them she had found a lump.

Today, more than 15 years later, Faustine’s mother is a breast cancer survivor and Faustine continues to take every opportunity she can to educate others about breast health and breast cancer. For her efforts, Faustine was recently named the recipient of the 2011 Joyce Gooding Spirit of Komen Award.

Following her mother’s diagnosis in 1994, Faustine made a promise to continually educate herself and others about the disease. In 2008, she was crowned Ms. Arizona United States, and she dedicated her yearlong platform to raising breast health awareness through public speaking opportunities. The following year, she became a Komen Phoenix Community Outreach Ambassador, attending health fairs and other community events to educate others about breast health and the Komen message.

In Faustine’s Chinese culture, people rarely talk openly about topics such as cancer, which are considered taboo. Faustine is trying to change this perception by raising awareness among the local Chinese community through her involvement with the Arizona Asian American Association. Speaking in Chinese at local events, she shares her mother's story.

“My mother is still uncomfortable talking about her experience, so I am her voice,” she says. “But if you don't know about breast cancer, how are you supposed to know what's happening in your body?”

Faustine has also set a personal goal to raise at least $1,000 a year for the Komen Phoenix Race for the Cure, held in Phoenix each October. Since 1998, she has raised $15,465 through grassroots efforts – including bake sales and bowl-a-thons – with family and friends. All of Faustine’s volunteer efforts take place outside of her full-time job as a Communications Specialist with the Better Business Bureau in Central, Northern and Western Arizona.

The Joyce Gooding Spirit of Komen Award is named after Joyce Gooding, a courageous breast cancer activist who lost her battle to the disease in 2008 at the age of 67. The annual award recognizes someone who has shown a demonstrated commitment to the Komen promise and the Komen Phoenix Affiliate through their spirit and enthusiasm. Faustine’s husband nominated her for the award.

Faustine was recognized at the Affiliate’s inaugural “Survivor Education and Empowerment Conference” on Saturday, June 11 at the Chandler Center for the Arts.

Faustine receives the Joyce Gooding Spirit of Komen Award from Elmer Gooding (Joyce's husband) and Denise and Macy McClain (Joyce's daughter and granddaughter).