While Anne Fenwick is not much of a drinker, she was quick to sign up for Dry July.
Mrs Fenwick said while it was not going to be the toughest challenge for her, she hoped it would raise money for a cause that was close to her heart.
‘‘If people can give up drinking — and I’m not going to preach to anybody — but it is one way of raising funds.
‘‘Any money we can make to keep these things going.’’
‘‘I can’t really say I’m giving up drinking because I don’t drink really.’’
One of the organisations the money from Dry July goes to is Pinc and Steel New Zealand.
Mrs Fenwick said Pinc and Steel used the funds to provide free physiotherapy programmes for people who have had cancer and said the organisation had been a godsend for her.
Almost three years ago, Mrs Fenwick went to the doctor after finding a small spot of blood.
The doctor sent her to the gynaecologist and she had a D&C (dilation and curettage).
She was then diagnosed with endometrial cancer.
She had to go to Christchurch to have an operation the same week her husband was dying.
‘‘I came back the night before he died.
‘‘He knew I was sick, but I didn’t tell him. Like I said, I have to go. When I left him on the Monday, I gave him a kiss.
‘‘I said, ‘I have to go to Christchurch for a wee operation, but I’ll be back’. He was unconscious when I got back.
‘‘I had to be strong for my kids and my grandchildren.’’
Her husband George was buried a fortnight before their 49th wedding anniversary.
Another blow followed when she went in for chemotherapy and discovered she was allergic to it.
She spent a year shutting out the world, until her doctor suggested the Pinc and Steel cancer rehabilitation programme.
‘‘You’re a bit scared, you think, should I do this or not?
‘‘I was quite happy to sit here with the curtain shut.’’
She said it really introduced her to getting back into her community.
As part of a small group of four they were guided through mini circuits.
‘‘It was just gentle and we were all recovering from different stages of cancer. And so it was just all about getting moving again in a safe environment and just pushing yourself a wee bit more each time.
‘‘The physiotherapy programme put me on that kind of road to wellness again.
‘‘I have to make the most of everything because really, I’ve been given like a second chance.
‘‘I think that’s what I felt. I thought, well, I have to do my bit now. These doctors have helped to save my life. I need to do my bit to make it easier. If it (the cancer) should come back, then hopefully they can help me again.
‘‘I think that exercise started that, that going to the physiotherapist and doing those wee exercises.’’
Dry July challenges New Zealanders to go alcohol-free for 31 days in July to raise funds for people affected by cancer.
Support services such as counselling, rehabilitation and personal care rely on public donations.
Participants can sign up individually or in teams or workplace.
There is also the option to purchase a golden ticket to enjoy a night off for special occasions.
