- bjaucoin
- 6 days ago
- 4 min read
“Hope grows stronger when we share it.”
Sometimes we never truly know how far our words will travel or how one person’s story may become part of another person’s strength.
When I returned to the YMCA in 2025 after spending the winter in Costa Rica, I met a new friend, Bill Dunbar. Like many friendships formed at the Y, ours began through movement, regular workouts, and conversations between sets.
One day, Bill shared something deeply personal. Earlier that year, he had been diagnosed with polycythemia vera, a rare form of blood cancer. Like my Stage IV metastatic breast cancer, there is currently no cure. Daily medication, regular medical appointments, and ongoing treatments have become part of his life, just as they have become part of mine.
Although our diagnoses are different, we share the same reality.
We live beside cancer every day.
Yet we also share something even more important.
We choose to live.
More Than a Fitness Centre
Our friendship grew within the supportive community of the YMCA of Southwest Nova Scotia.
The YMCA has become much more than a place to exercise for both of us. It is a place where people encourage one another, celebrate each other’s victories, and offer support through life’s challenges.
One of the people who helps create that welcoming environment is Denise Daury, Wellness Lead. Excel supports individuals going through cancer treatment, cancer survivors, people living with cancer, and others managing chronic health conditions. It provides a safe place to build strength, regain confidence, and connect with others who understand that healing is about much more than medicine.
Earlier this year, I had the privilege of speaking with one of Denise’s Excel groups and sharing my Five Foundational Steps to Living Life Over Cancer. Once again, I witnessed the incredible power of movement, encouragement, and community.
Healing does not happen only in hospitals.
It also happens through movement.
It happens through friendship.
It happens through purpose.
It happens when we realize we are not alone.
When RISE Became Part of Bill’s Story
After learning about Bill’s diagnosis, I gave him a copy of my book, RISE: Living Life Over Cancer. He read it and thanked me.
When I returned home from Costa Rica this spring, Bill came to see me again.
He shared that he had experienced a particularly difficult winter. During that time, his wife encouraged him to read RISE a second time.
This time, the message reached him differently.
Instead of focusing on what cancer had taken away, Bill focused on what remained possible.
He committed himself to training for the Atlantic Seniors Bodybuilding Championship and earned first place in his age category.
His accomplishment was not simply about winning.
It was about refusing to allow cancer to define him.
It was about choosing to rise.
Rising Above the Pain
Like all of us living with cancer, Bill has experienced both victories and setbacks.
More recently, he faced another medical challenge involving pain, surgery, and recovery.
Once again, he leaned into the message of rising.
This time, he responded differently.
Bill wrote the lyrics to a song inspired by the title and message of RISE. Using artificial intelligence to help create the music, he transformed his experience into a beautiful, inspiring song titled Rise Above the Pain.
When he shared it with me, I was deeply moved.
The song is not about pretending life is easy.
It acknowledges pain.
It recognizes fear.
It honours the difficult days.
Yet throughout it all, it reminds us that we can continue to rise.
One treatment.
One workout.
One conversation.
One day at a time.
Listening to Bill’s song reminded me that hope has an amazing ripple effect.
One person shares their story.
Another person finds strength in it.
Then that person creates something that encourages someone else.
Hope keeps moving forward.
“Medicine gives us more days.
Movement gives life to those days.
Community gives us the courage to keep rising.”
— Betty Jean Aucoin
Surviving Is Not the Goal
Bill and I often talk about how fortunate we are to have excellent medical teams.
Conventional medicine keeps us alive.
But movement, nutrition, meaningful relationships, purpose, and hope help us truly live.
They strengthen our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
They remind us that we are so much more than a diagnosis.
Together, Bill and I are living proof that it is possible to move beyond simply surviving and begin thriving.
Every workout becomes more than exercise.
It becomes a declaration.
I am still here.
I am still moving.
I am still living.
Finding Your Community
If you or someone you love is living with cancer, recovering from treatment, or managing another chronic health condition, I encourage you to reach out to your local YMCA and take that first step toward support.
Many YMCAs across Canada and the United States offer wellness programs, chronic disease management classes, cancer rehabilitation, or supportive exercise programs. Every community is different, so ask what is available where you live and explore what might help you begin.
If you are in Southwest Nova Scotia, I encourage you to learn more about the YMCA Programs and see how movement and community can change lives, including yours.
Support may be closer than you think.
Do not be afraid to ask for the support you need.
Sometimes the first step through the door becomes the first step toward hope, so take it.
Rise Above the Pain
Today, Bill and I are honoured to share his song, Rise Above the Pain.
Bill has generously given me permission to share both his story and his music in the hope that they will encourage others facing cancer, chronic illness, or life’s unexpected challenges.
We hope this song reminds you that rising does not always look dramatic.
Sometimes rising means getting out of bed.
Attending your treatment.
Going for a walk.
Walking into the gym.
Asking for help.
Beginning again after a setback.
Or simply believing that today still holds purpose.
Our hope is that this story encourages you to find your own community, embrace movement however you can, and remember that none of us has to rise alone, so begin today.
Hope was shared with Bill.
He transformed it into music.
We are now sharing it with you.
How will you rise today? By finding your own community, embracing movement however you can, and remembering that none of us has to rise alone. Take one small step forward.
Self-care is the new health care.
🎵 Listen to Bill's original song, Rise Above the Pain.
