THIS BOOK IS THE ONLY THING THAT’S JUST MINE.” —Teenage girl at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital School April/May 2015 51 COURTESY OF SHERI SOBRATO BRISSON with cancer, but for those with all kinds of childhood health problems, such as obesity and eating disorders, asthma, allergies, injuries and more. Learning experiences For Brisson, cancer was in some ways a constructive thing. “I don’t know who I would have turned into if I hadn’t had cancer in my early 20s,” she says. From her time fighting her illnesses, she learned two key things: 1) Self-reflection is a powerful tool for healing and 2) Life is too short to not be doing what you love. Before being diagnosed with cancer, the Stanford graduate had already started a career on Wall Street, spending her days immersed in spreadsheets and financial plans. But while she was taking all the “right” steps, she wasn’t passionate about what she was doing. What she did love was working with kids, something she had discovered as early as age 16 when she volunteered as candy striper in a hospital. “But I never just gave myself permission to do it,” she says. So, upon her recovery, Brisson changed course. She devoted the next couple of decades of her life to her goal of helping sick kids through such organizations as the American Cancer Society, National Brain Tumor Foundation, Ronald McDonald House and Packard Children’s Hospital. She also met and married her husband Eric. The couples live in Atherton with their two children. “Cancer actually gave me the freedom to do what I wanted to do. I also learned how to respond to people differently. When I went through a patient empowerment program, I discovered that sharing feelings and stories connects you to other people. It’s our responsibility to start those conversations and be more real with people, and they’ll be real back to you. And I’ve lived my life that way every since I was sick.” Helping other people and giving back to her community was already in Brisson’s blood. She is the eldest daughter of well-known Silicon Valley philanthropists John A. and Susan Sobrato, and the sister of Lisa Sobrato-Sonsini, who established the Sobrato Family Foundation in 1996. According to the San Jose Business Journal, the Sobrato Organization donated $19.42 million to local charities in 2014. What they’re saying While the book was officially launched in October 2014, kids have been using “Digging Deep” in hospitals across the country for about a year. Responses from these patients and their families have been gratifying for Brisson. Comments include these: “Wow; you’ve given this to the right kid. I have had cancer three times. I can answer every one of the questions in your book.”— Cameron, age 16, cancer survivor “This book is the only thing that’s just mine.” —Teenage girl at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital School “Finally something to heal my child’s heart!” —Parent of an oncology patient “Digging Deep” is available through Resonance House, a nonprofit publishing subsidiary of the Community Foundation of Silicon Valley. Any child or family that would benefit from the book can request one for free at diggingdeep.org. The site also offers opportunities to sponsor kids by making a donation for the book, and ways for institutions to buy the book. “Digging Deep” is also available on Amazon, but it was placed there more for promotional and distribution purposes. “We don’t particularly like to sell the book, so when we do sell it, 100 percent goes back to our book gifting program,” explains Brisson. Most importantly, she wants to do whatever she can to get in the book into the hands of kids who need it. “Being told you have one of these illnesses is a lot to swallow,” she says. “I’m trying to teach people that they don’t have to just act strong; that they can really be strong. They can do that by being real, by being vulnerable, by exploring things they’re ready to explore. “If I can teach people that through the book, I’ve done what I’ve set out to do.” n Proud journal writer shows the inspiring result of time spent learning to capture the experiences of being a cancer patient and survivor.
South Bay Accent - Apr/May 2015
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