Begin Your Healing Journey

Connect & Thrive

Connect & Thrive (CAT) is a social impact company for cancer previvors, patients, thrivers, and caregivers. CAT empowers women on their personal healing journeys by connecting them to our Marketplace of reputable practitioners and curated products. CAT’s partners offer evidence-based healing modalities and healthy living products that help prevent cancer, navigate a cancer diagnosis, and mitigate the risk of recurrence.

CAT’s mission is to help women CONNECT with a community of partners who can help them THRIVE!

Empower

CAT’s digital platform empowers women coping with cancer to take control of their healing journeys via their personal KittyFund™ which is linked to our curated Marketplace. 100% of a patient’s KittyFund™ is for her exclusive use in CAT’s Marketplace.

Engage

Connect with the curated network of partners in CAT's Marketplace. Our partners offer evidence-based healing modalities as well as services (in-person and virtual) and products designed to nourish your Mind, Body, and Spirit.

Educate

Browse our collection of articles, research studies, videos, and podcasts to learn more about evidence-based healing modalities as well as the side effects and symptoms associated with a cancer diagnosis, treatment, recovery, and thrivership.

How A KittyFund™ Works

Create A CAT Account

Enter your email and a password to access CAT’s unique digital platform.

Start A KittyFund™

Create a fundraiser for yourself, a friend, or family member. Asking for and accepting help are signs of strength not weakness.

Share Your KittyFund™

People want to know what they can do! Contributing to your KittyFund™ allows them to help in a meaningful way.

Engage With CAT‘s Partners

Use your KittyFund™ to purchase products and services in CAT’s Marketplace.

"In the face of uncertainty,
there is nothing wrong with hope."

~ O. Carl Simonton

CAT's Spirit Guide

CAT’s spirit guide, “Hope” (created by artist Hannah Bullen-Ryner), is a cheetah that stands for speed, fast action, and achievement - and, yet she also signifies flexibility, determination, and patience. Hope represents a high capacity for empathy and precise knowledge as to how to respond to the hurt, pain, and suffering of others. She helps you to awaken your hidden potential and empowers you to achieve your highest potential. Hope is our inspiration for Connect & Thrive. She is here to give you the courage and confidence to pursue your healing journey and to remind you that you are never alone on your path.

Founder's Message

In the summer of 2004, my mother was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. I was her healthcare advocate/caregiver for the next 17 years. She was not only my mother but also my best friend. Then, in the winter of 2016, I was diagnosed with breast cancer and chose to be treated by conventional medicine. At the end of my treatment, I was deemed to be in remission and, five years later, cured. However, the underlying conditions that allowed the cancer to develop and proliferate had not been identified or addressed.

Since I did not have a genetic predisposition or family history of breast cancer, my diagnosis was deemed to be due to "environmental factors." Having worked as an environmental engineer for more than 25 years at that time, the irony was not lost on me. So, I embarked on a mission to bridge the gap between conventional medicine and holistic health in order to begin my healing journey which, to this day, is ongoing.

I started to spend a great deal of time in nature - in the forest and by the sea - with my beloved dog by my side. I was also inspired to explore healing modalities like acupuncture, aromatherapy, detoxification, massage, nutrition & diet, Reiki, and yoga. I was blessed to begin the work toward bringing my mind, body, and spirit into alignment. I was also determined to help others do the same.

Connect & Thrive (CAT), is the result of my determination.

My mother passed away in August 2021. Throughout her journey, and mine, I thought about how I could make a positive difference in the lives of others. True healing takes time, energy, and resources. It is not a destination but, rather, a lifelong journey. It is my heartfelt hope that CAT becomes the connection point for previvors, patients, thrivers, and caregivers to begin their own healing journeys.